Sonamy: Part 2
by Shadow051
Summary: Seven months have gone by and Sonic and Amy's relationship continues to grow healthy and strong. Just when things are turning out great for them, a revenge plot begins to unravel itself that threatens everything the two worked so hard to build together. Meanwhile, a mysterious silver-white hedgehog appears to Station Square with only one goal: kill the "blue speed demon".
1. Prologue: The Arrival

It was a cool and crisp night in the city of Station Square. The sky emulated with the heavenly glow of the full moon and the twinkling of stars. There wasn't a single cloud visible to ruin such a magnificent sight. However, since the city itself was so busy, even in the dead of night, the beauty of the sky was, somewhat, hard to notice.

Station Square was a big metropolis, filled with buildings, shops and everything one would expect in a city. In the heart of the city was an enormous park, where the suburbs were located on the outskirts of town. Although it was only 11:00 at night, the city was well lit, almost as if the city never slept. Many of the high-raised buildings lights shone with a yellowish color, while the street was busy with the headlights of cars and the glow of the street lamps. From a distance, the city was almost like the sky; a well-light and beautiful sight. However, there was a section outside the city that didn't have any light, making it one of the most eerie of places, by night, anyway.

Between the city and the suburban area of the city, there was a field that no one really went to, either by night or by day. By day, no one entered the field because of the beauty that it had; there were wild flowers of various colors and scents, the grass was fresh and green and the trees behind the field were healthy and filled with leaves. However, by night, no one entered the field because it was so dark and forest behind it added to the eeriness. Even with the light of the moon and the stars, things were hardly visible.

In the darkness of the field, all that could really be seen is the lights of the city over the horizon. The trees and the leaves beneath them were hardly even seen, but were heard with every little breeze that blew by. Many crickets chirped happily in the night, orchestrating for an audience they never needed. Although the field itself was somewhat brightened by the night sky, there was no light in the forest, making it the most terrifying area of the city during this time.

This forest was rich and dense. The top of the trees were so thick with leaves that it prevented the light of the moon from peaking through. Because of the lack of light, one would find it rather difficult to see anything, even the neighboring tree that was only a few feet away. Although there was an abundance of leaves on the ground, the inhabitants that lived there, if any, never made a sound. The only things that could be heard was the soft swaying of the trees from time to time and the rustle of leaves as they were, slowly, drifted with the breeze. Although the night was terrifying, even during the day, no one entered the forest, mainly because they were afraid of what they might find there. The near-dead silence that was there, both during the day and the night, could make, even the strongest and bravest person, begin to feel fear and doubt.

A rare occurrence happened that evening, as the breeze that blew past began to strengthen, swaying the tops of the trees and blowing the leaves around much harder than usual. As the breeze began to pick up more and more, the leaves began rustling, making it sound as if it were raining at that time. The wind kept picking up even harder now, causing the leaves to move into a strange pattern, almost looking like they were starting to spiral on the ground.

Above the thick tops of the trees, in the clear night skies, clouds began to form in a small group, right above where the leaves were. Much like the leaves, the clouds began to form a spiral shape, churning slowly in the sky. The clouds continued to spiral, lightning began to crack and thunder began to boom in regular intervals. The mysterious part about all of it was that it was happening all in one spot; there weren't clouds over any part of the city.

After several moments, the eye of the spiraling clouds began to open, forming a black hole in the center. From the hole, high above the sky, a silver-white figure began falling to the ground. As it fell, moving closer and closer to the trees below, the clouds that had been formed began to dissipate until there was nothing left. It looked as if nothing had happened at all for there was no evidence or trace of the strange phenomenon that just occurred.

The figure fell into the leaves from the trees, which was very fortunate for him; the leaves had broken his fall, avoiding any serious injury. From the leaves, he began falling to the ground. All the while, his arms were extended, as if he was about to grab on to something on his way down. However, his hands were balled into fists the whole journey. As he was but seconds away from hitting the ground, he opened his fists, activating a psycho-kinetic ability he had, preventing him from hitting the ground. Instead, he just hovered there for a moment, surveying his surroundings, his feet dangling a few inches from the ground.

He panned his head back and forth, observing the dark, dense forest he had landed in. He kept his breathing soft and his movements at a minimum, making sure he didn't attract any unwanted attention. After several minutes, he was pretty confident that no one had heard or seen his arrival. So, he unfocused his psycho-kinetic energy and allowed himself to drop. When he did, he heard the eerie and uncomforting tearing of his black and purple boots crushing the brown, dried up leaves beneath him.

The silver-white hedgehog continued to pan his head back and forth, wondering to himself where he was and where he should go. His golden-yellow eyes swayed from one side of his face to another, even though he could hardly see anything. When he turned his whole body around at a 180 degree angle, he saw a dim light on the horizon, or so he thought. Confident that the light was emulating from a city of some kind, he began walking towards it.

As he continued to walk, his heart began to race faster and faster with every step he took. He had never seen a place so dark or creepy, and, at this point, he was regretting that he had. The distant chirping of crickets, mixed with the sound of the leaves crumpling under him was boosting his fear levels through the roof. Therefore, he used his psycho-kinetic ability to levitate over the leaves. As he hovered over the leaves, he began floating towards the light, trying his best to avoid any trees that got in his way.

After a long while, he came out of the thick, dense forest and entered what appeared to be a field of some kind. Although it was still dark, he was able to make out that there weren't any more trees; the moon and the stars became visible and bright in the crystal clear sky. Feeling much more relaxed and calm, he allowed himself to drop on a bed of grass that was beneath him. Now that he was able to see a lot better, he knew the light ahead of him was definitely from a city. As a result, he continued making his way towards the light on the horizon.

As he continued to walk, he looked up at the moon-lit sky. As he did so, his eyes widened in amazement and his mouth opened agape. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen such a beautiful sight.

"What a remarkable sight," he said aloud, not stopping this stride, "I never thought I'd actually see a crystal clear night sky again. This is incredible."

Reluctantly, he averted his attention back to the path he was walking. By the sound of the crinkling gravel beneath his boots, he concluded that he was walking along a dirt path now. Eventually, the dirt path led him to a ridge, where he was able to see a really magnificent overview of the city. Like before, he moved his head back and forth, soaking in the beautiful sight of the city skyline.

"So, this is the city of Station Square, huh?" he asked, crossing his arms and smiling. "This is a truly amazing sight to behold."

Then, the smile on his face slowly began to vanish, as he remembered about why he was here in the first place. His eyebrows furrowed and his fists clenched in anger. Images began racing through his mind, causing him to begin tearing in the corners of his eyes.

"There's no time for sight-seeing, now," he said in a stern voice, "Right now, I'm here on a mission. I have to find that 'blue speed demon.' And, when I do...I have to kill him."

With that, he uncrossed his arms, nodded his head and began making his way down the ridge, towards the entrance to the city.


	2. Chapter 1: Special Thanks

Sonic the Hedgehog, slowly, opened his eyes, as the bright light of the morning sun pierced through the window. It was morning, 9:00, according to the digital clock on the night stand to his right. He rubbed his emerald-green eyes with the only free hand he had, yawning as he became aware of his surroundings.

He was in a bedroom, one with egg shell blue walls and a cool gray carpet. There was a closet door by the foot of his bed and a window above him to his left. Next to the closet door was a dresser with a giant mirror on it and many drawers on either side of a chair that in front of it. On the wall opposite the dresser, to his right, was the night table with a lamp and a digital alarm clock on it. Next to the night table was a desk that had a computer on it. Finally, on the wall opposite the window, were the main door and a bookshelf with many different assortments of books in it. It was really a sight to behold, even if the room wasn't his.

The blue hedgehog tried to get up, but found that he was unable to move. He was only able to move his legs and stretch, but he wasn't able to get up. He turned his head and saw the reason why he was unable to move; a pink hedgehog girl was sleeping on his left arm. Furthermore, she had her arm wrapped lightly around his waist. Her name was Amy Rose and she was his girlfriend.

As gently as he could, he lifted her arms off his waist and placed it next to her, trying his best not to wake her, since she was still asleep. Then, he began to slowly wiggle his arm out from underneath her sleeping body. After several moments, he finally got his arm out. Finally, he quietly got off the bed and headed towards the restroom, which was located across the hall from the bedroom.

After a quick shower, he began brushing his quills on the back of his head until they were nice and perfect. Then, he walked back to the bedroom to get his red and white-striped shoes that he'd forgotten to get before he left. When he slowly and quietly opened the door of the bedroom, he froze at the sight of Amy, sleeping there on the bed.

She looked so peaceful, lying there in her long, white nightgown. Her back was facing him, but that didn't matter; she was still beautiful, with the blue bed sheet covering the lower half of her body. As much as he wanted to stay and watch her some more, he collected his shoes and slowly left the room. He fastened the gold buckles of his shoes in the hallway. When he was done, he began to make his way downstairs to the kitchen.

The whole house belonged to Amy, so everything in it was kept very neat and very organized. All the furniture was neatly polished and all the rugs and floors were perfectly spotless. Sonic had been living here with Amy for seven months now, ever since they first told each other that they loved each other for the first time. Even in the seven months, he was still very astonished at how neat, clean and organized the house was.

With a smile on his face, he entered the kitchen and decided to make some tea for the two of them. Having filled up a kettle of water and placing it on the stove, he began preparing the fixings for the tea. When he was done, he began to get a few things out to make the two of them breakfast. As he opened the refrigerator to get some butter and eggs, his left ear twitched, an involuntary response for when he knew or heard someone nearby.

"Good Morning, Sonic," said the soft, tender voice from the kitchen doorway, "What are you doing?"

"Morning, Ames," said Sonic, a hint of nervousness in his voice, "I was just making some breakfast. What would you like?"

Amy put her hands on her hips and said, "I would like for you to sit down and let me make us breakfast, if you don't mind."

"Come on, Ames," he said, emitting a sigh of frustration, "There's nothing wrong with me making you breakfast every now and then."

"I know," she said, as she entered the kitchen and accompanied him, "But, it's my house, so I say that I'm making breakfast."

"You're spoiling me, you know," he said, playfully, "If you won't allow me to make the food, will you allow me to prepare the tea?"

"Very well," Amy said, kissing him lightly on the lips.

Sonic prepared the tea for the two of them and sat down. He watched, as Amy went back and forth, preparing their meal. As Sonic watched, he let out a small sigh and hung his head. He really didn't like being catered to like this. However, Amy always insisted that she made his breakfast. It was at times like these that Sonic began to feel like a freeloader, but Amy really didn't seem to mind at all. He had a feeling that she did mind, but that she wouldn't admit it, even if he begged her to.

"Besides," said Amy, snapping Sonic back from his own thoughts, "It's the least I could do to…you know…express my thanks to you."

Question marks began forming around his head, as he watched be take some plates out of the cupboard and place them on the table. He didn't know what he had done for her to be thanking him.

"Thank me?" he asked, as he scratched the back of his head in confusion, "What do you need to thank me for? What did I do?"

As Amy took the eggs off the stove, her cheeks began to turn a bright red. Blushing and smiling, she slowly turned to him and whispered, "For spending the night with me."

Now, it was Sonic's turn for his cheeks to begin filling with blood. Ever since they had been together, Sonic had lived in her house, since he really didn't have a house of his own. However, he had always been sleeping in the elegant guest room of her house, located in the room adjacent to her own bedroom. It was only since last night that they had actually spent the night together. They hadn't done anything too intimate; only a few kisses and cuddles until they had both fallen asleep in each other's arms. Sonic had always promised her that they'd spend the night together, but was always to nervous or too embarrassed to actually do so, until now, that is.

"I always keep my word," he said, as he looked into her jade-green eyes. They both smiled at each other, love and passion written on both their faces and caring and compassion glimmering in their eyes.

Sonic got up and wrapped his arms around Amy's waist. Then, he brought her closer to him in a tight embrace.

"Thank you," she whispered, as she nestled her head in his chest. She could hear that his heart was racing, mainly because he was still a little shaken up about the night before.

"You're welcome," he whispered back, as he put both of his hands on her cheeks. Then, he, gently, brushed his lips against hers, in what can only be described as a passionate kiss; one of many that they had shared ever since they can remember.

After a few moments of them in their embrace, Amy moaned softly, as Sonic began pulling away, reluctantly, ending their kiss.

"I love you, Sonic," she said, nestling her head in his chest again, "Always and forever."

"I love you too, Amy," he responded, kissing the top of her forehead, "Always and forever."


	3. Chapter 2: Loneliness

After breakfast, Sonic and Amy began cleaning up the dishes they had used. Amy stood at the sink and began rinsing and cleaning the plates and silverware. Sonic stood next to her, drying each dish she placed in the drain board and placing it back where it belonged. As they continued, they kept glancing at each other, giggling as their eyes met at the same time.

When they were finished, Sonic cleared his throat and said, "Ames, I need to go over to Tails' workshop for a little while. I need him to help me with…something."

Tails was Sonic's best friend. His real name was Miles Prower, but because he was an orange fox with two tails, everyone just called him "Tails" for short.

"How long are you going to be gone?" asked Amy, a slight hint of worry in her voice. Sonic detected it and began to grow concerned. Soon, that feeling of concern began to grow into suspicion.

"For a little while," he assured her, raising his eyebrow in suspicion, "May I ask why you wanted to know? Is something wrong?"

She let out a tiny sigh and said, "No reason. I was just…curious…that's all."

"Come on, Ames," Sonic said, his arms crossed and an eyebrow still raised, "Tell me the truth; why do you want to know?"

Amy felt a little bit nervous and guilty at the same time; not a very good combination, she concluded. She did, in fact, have a reason for asking, but she felt a wave of shame rush over her whenever she had to explain it to Sonic.

"Alright," said Amy, as she hung her head in defeat, "I asked because I was hoping we could do something together, just you and me, that's all."

Sonic uncrossed his arms and smiled. Although they had been together for this long, a part of them were still living in the past, before they were together. In the "good old days," Sonic would have always run away from Amy, while Amy was always chasing behind him. She had always dreamed of Sonic being hers ever since the day he first rescued her. As a direct result of finally getting him to be hers, she always wanted him close by, whether she goes where he goes and vice versa. From time to time, Sonic would get annoyed by this; sometimes, he just wanted to be alone for a little while. However, he knew there was nothing he could do about it. This was a part of who she was and he had come to accept and appreciate it.

"I understand if you don't want to," she said, softly. "I also understand if you think I'm too clingy. I'm sorry."

"You're not clingy," he said, a tone of compassion and understanding in his voice, "I completely understand and I do want to do something with you later. I just need to head over to Tails' for a little while, and then we'll spend some time together. I promise."

Amy looked into Sonic's eyes and smiled. She was so happy that she felt tears of joy beginning to well up inside her. However, she wasn't happy because they were doing something later; she was happy because he loved her for who she was, and she appreciated it a whole lot. As a result, she wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her lips against his again.

"Thank you," she whispered, as she wiped some of the tears from her eyes.

"No problem," he responded, as he released the embrace. He made his way to the front door, Amy following close behind.

When he got to the front door, Amy opened it for him, a smile still on her face. He smiled back and kissed her on the forehead.

"I'll be back before you know it," he said, as he began to walk down the porch and onto the driveway.

"See you later, Sonic" she said, waving at him from the doorway. Sonic waved back and began jogging down the driveway onto the dirt path in front of the house. He began sprinting down the dirt path, kicking up dirt as he did so. Amy watched as he began rapidly shrinking in the horizon. It wasn't long before she heard a loud BOOM echoing from the horizon. Because he labeled as 'the fastest thing alive,' he had broken the sound barrier, traveling faster than the speed of sound (over 768 mph, in case you were wondering).

For a moment, Amy just stood there in the doorway, staring at the direction Sonic had just gone. The more time that passed, the more her heart began to race in her chest. Her breathing had slightly increased, but not by much; only enough for her nose to keep inhaling, not her mouth.

After what felt like a long moment, she began to walk back into her house. Constantly, she kept looking back down the road, as if she expected to see Sonic running back to her. Unfortunately, she saw no sign of him. Therefore, she took a few steps back, closed the door and locked it. Then, she rested her head on the cool door, the three bangs on her forehead flattening as she did so. All the while, she had one hand on her chest and the other on the door knob.

"Be still, my heart," she whispered to herself, "He's only gone for a moment. He'll be back…he always comes back."

Several more minutes had passed and Amy was still standing in the same position. She kept her hand on the door knob, like she was waiting for him to come back so she could open the door and let him back in. Every time she tried to loosen her grip on the knob, her heart would race a little bit faster.

Reluctantly, she walked away from the door and sat on the steps that were right in front of the door. She sat there, now, waiting for Sonic to come back, like a small puppy, waiting for their master to come home. All the while, she kept one hand on her chest, feeling her heart pounding against her ribs in a rhythmic motion.

This wasn't the first time this had happened to her, but she always hoped it would be the last. Amy always felt this way whenever Sonic left to go somewhere and she stayed behind. She felt this way whenever she sat alone in her big, empty house, just like when she and Sonic weren't together, seven months ago. It was a feeling she wished would go away, but it never did when she wanted it to. The feeling would never last forever, but the initial impact always seemed to get worse every time he's leave her behind.

"It's only for a little while," she reassured herself, "It's not like the way it used to be. He'll be back before I know it, just like he said. I just need to keep myself busy until then, that's all."

Amy stood to her feet, feeling her heart slowly begin to ease down. "Besides, he's never hurt me like that. I'd be foolish to even think he would. I just need to stay occupied and everything will be fine."

With that said, she began to make her way to the phone in the living room that was in the room next to the front door on the left. She decided to call up her best friend, Cream the Rabbit. She sat down on the couch, feeling her heart was racing like it did. She was relieved that the feeling of loneliness had passed, even though she knew the next time it came, it'll probably be worse.

As she took the phone off the receiver and began dialing the number, she couldn't help but wonder: what was that 'something' he needed Tails' help with?


	4. Chapter 3: The Decision

Sonic ran as fast as his legs could carry him, and that was extremely fast. He ran all the way down the dirt path towards the city entrance at break-neck speed. As a result, everything around him began moving like a blur, almost like the Doppler Effect, when the stars whiz past in streaks of white lines, except the lines weren't white, but in different colors. As he ran past, he could barely make out anyone or anything that stood in his path. Fortunately for him, in his experience of running, he was able to determine what was what and how to avoid them when he saw them.

It wasn't long before he found himself entering the city of Station Square, and what a sight it was. Skyscrapers and tall, high-raised buildings made up this metropolis. Many people were busily walking the streets, while others were driving in their vehicles. Furthermore, the monorail that traveled all over the city was as active as ever. Although it was only morning, the city was in full swing.

Sonic continued to run through the city, turning down many streets without breaking his speed or breaking a sweat. As he turned down Main Street, he passed what was labeled as the tallest building in Station Square, Station Tower. As he passed by, he looked at the building and shuddered at its sight. He remembered, many months ago, the he had a horrifying nightmare, where he watched his beloved Amy die on the top of Station Tower. He concentrated his thoughts on the road before him; that had been so long ago that there was no reason why he would need to remind himself about it.

As he continued to tear down the busy streets of the city, he found himself entering the outskirts of the city, following the tracks of the train from the station to the outer section of the city. As he ran down next to the train tracks, he saw the train itself whiz past him, looking like nothing but a long silver blur to him. Sonic continued to follow the tracks below him until the scenery began to change from the gray and crowded city to a green and open area. This was the indicator that Sonic had finally reached his destination.

When he saw the terminal up ahead, he skidded to a stop directly in front of it. He began walking out of the building and into the open, dense and beautiful forest, known as the Mystic Ruin. For miles and miles, there was nothing but trees and grasslands. Unlike the city, which was busy and full of life, the Mystic Ruins were quiet and peaceful. The sun peaked through the tops of the trees, showing sunspots all over the ground. The air was rich with the scent of trees and wild flowers. To sum it all up, this was truly was a magnificent sight to behold.

After admiring the scenery for a moment, Sonic began jogging down the dirt path before him. He ran at a reasonable speed; not as fast as he would have liked, but definitely faster than anyone could handle. He continued along the path until he came to a ridge. Atop the ridge, he saw a small house with a large generator in the back and a long runway in the front. As the house came closer and closer, he began to slow his run to a walk. As he continued to make his way to the house, two people came out of the red door in the front and began making their way to him.

One of them was an orange, two-tailed fox named Tails. The other was a buff, red echidna with long dreadlocks and two spikes coming out of each of his knuckles. His name was Knuckles the Echidna. The two of them were Sonic's closest friends and most trusted allies. They always helped Sonic whenever danger threatened the city or anywhere in the world. Tails was an excellent mechanic and techno-guy. He'd help Sonic by piloting his bi-plane, the Tornado and building anything else that would help him in his times of need. Knuckles was hot-headed and quite gullible at times, but was helpful when he needed to be.

As Sonic saw them approaching, he stopped his walking and smiled at them, waving from where he stood.

"Hey Tails! Hey Knuckles! Long time, no see," he greeted with a smile.

"What's up, Sonic?" asked Knuckles, as the two of them approached, "It's been a while since we heard from you. What's new?"

"Yeah, Sonic," chimed in Tails, "How's Amy doing? Are you two still together?"

"Of course," said Sonic, as he let out a chuckle.

"So," said Tails, "What brings you here? Knuckles and I were just heading into town."

"Actually, I have something I wanted to talk to you guys about," said Sonic, "If it's not too much trouble, that is."

"Not at all," said Knuckles. "Is something wrong? Did Eggman show his sorry face again? We haven't heard from him in a while, you know."

"I know," said Sonic, "His absence is quite suspicious, but that's not what I needed to talk to you guys about. It's something else that's a little bit more important."

With that, the three of them made their way back to the house. They sat down on a bench in front of the house. Tails and Knuckles sat on one end of the table while Sonic stood in front of them. He paced back and forth, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment, at least that's what it looked like. Tails and Knuckles picked this up right away and knew that something was up.

"What's wrong, Sonic?" asked Tails, "You seem really nervous about something."

"I am nervous. More nervous than I have ever been in my life," said Sonic.

"What about?" asked Knuckles, "It's not like you to be this nervous about anything."

"Well," Sonic began, scratching the back of his head, unsure of how to explain to them, "You see, I've been thinking really long and hard about this, and I'm still not sure if it's the best idea in the world. However, I am really confident that we are ready."

"Ready?" asked Tails, as he scratched the back of his head. "What are you ready for? And with whom are you ready with?"

Several minutes had passed and Sonic still didn't answer him. He just continued to pace back and forth, constantly inhaling and exhaling large breaths. Tails and Knuckles exchanged unsure glances at one another, not really sure what it was that Sonic was so worried about.

Many more minutes had passed before Sonic had stopped pacing, his back facing his friends. His eyes were closed and his fists were clenched. If it wasn't for the ambience of the forest, Tails and Knuckles could have sworn they heard Sonic's heart beating against his chest.

Then, after another long and steady breath, Sonic, finally said, "I want to ask Amy Rose to marry me."

The moment the words had left his mouth, everything had fallen silent. It was as if someone had hit the mute button and everything was quiet. Tails and Knuckles stared at Sonic, who still wasn't facing them, and then exchanged glances at one another. They weren't sure if Sonic had said what they thought he said, or if they both had just imagined it.

"What…what did you just say?" asked Tails, as he stood to his feet.

"I said," said Sonic, as he inhaled and exhaled again, "I want to ask Amy Rose to marry me."

Again, silence had fallen upon them. However, unlike before, a grin had begun to form on both Tails' and Knuckles' faces.


	5. Chapter 4: Feeling

Although it was still morning, around 10:00 or so, the city was extremely active. Cars and buses were crowding the streets while pedestrians were crowding the sidewalks. It was a rather warm day, not too humid or too cold, but perfect. The sun was glistening above the city and small clouds rolled by slowly. It was a perfect day and Amy was willing to enjoy it anyway she could.

She was sitting on a bench in the city's park, overlooking the beautiful lake that was in the center of it. She sat and marveled at its beauty, thinking how romantic it would be if she and Sonic had a picnic or something there. Amy looked down at her feet, feeling her cheeks turning bright red. She looked at her red and white-striped boots and smiled. She let out a soft sigh and closed her eyes, letting the thoughts of her boyfriend run through her mind. However, her romantic thoughts were short-lived, for she heard the sound of a soft voice calling her name.

"Amy!" she heard the voice yell again, "Over here!"

She directed her attention from the lake to her left and saw a small rabbit-girl in a yellow sundress and orange shoes running up to her. Hovering around her was a small bubbly-looking creature with small wings, round, wide eyes and a small red bow-tie around its neck. The girl was Cream the Rabbit and the small hovering creature was her Chao friend, named Cheese.

"Hey, Cream," said Amy, as she waved back at her, "How's it been? I haven't seen you for a long time."

"I know," Cream said, "It's been so long that I was starting to worry about you. How's it been? Are you and Mr. Sonic still together?"

Amy let out a chuckle. "Come on, Cream. What kind of question is that? You know we're still together."

The both of them let out soft giggles as Cream sat next to Amy. They had been best friends for as long as they both could remember. They had gone on many adventures in the past, many of them involving Amy chasing Sonic on his adventures. Now, ever since they've been together, Amy had no need to chase Sonic, for he was hers now.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" asked Cream in a soft voice, "You sounded rather upset on the phone. Is everything alright?"

Amy let out a small sigh and said, "Yeah, everything's alright. It's only when I'm alone when things go from bad to worse."

"What do you mean?" asked Cream.

"Chao, Chao," said Cheese, as he hovered in front of Amy's face, a worried look on his face as well.

Amy let out a sigh. She had never really talked to anyone about her problem until now, mainly because it was starting to get worse and she needed a little bit of help.

"Let me ask you this," said Amy, "How long have Sonic and I been together?"

Cream thought about it for a moment. "Seven months, if I'm not mistaken."

"Seven magical months," said Amy, letting out another soft sigh. "We've been together for so long that it feels like it's been forever. I can remember the day he told me he loved me like it was yesterday."

"Me too," said Cream, as she blushed. She remembered that day, on the shores of Emerald Coast, when Sonic told her the truth about his feelings to her for the very first time.

"I never did thank you for what you, Tails and Knuckles did," said Amy, snapping Cream back to the present.

"What do you mean?" asked Cream, as she raised an eyebrow at him.

"It was because of you three that Sonic and I are together," Amy said, turning her head to face her, "If it wasn't for the silly challenge that you were involved in, we'd never be together. When I think about it now, I never did thank you guys for it, as ridiculous as it was."

Cream blushed and said, "You're welcome, I guess, but what seems to be bothering you now? Aren't you happy being with Mr. Sonic?"

"Most definitely!" she exclaimed, "But, it's only when he has to leave me that I begin to feel…different."

"Different?" asked Cream, "What do you mean by 'different?'"

Amy let out a deep sigh. "I can't explain it, really. All I know is that, every time he goes somewhere, whether it's important or not, a part of me feels…well…abandoned."

Cream raised an eyebrow. "You think Mr. Sonic is 'abandoning' you?"

"I don't know," Amy said, letting out a sigh, "It just feels like it did before, back when we weren't together. It feels like he's trying to run away from me, avoiding me like he used to. I know he's not doing that at all, he'd never do that! But, I just feel…like he's trying to get away from me."

"That's crazy talk, Amy," reassured Cream, as she rubbed her back, "I understand that a part of you is still living in the past, but, it's like you said: Mr. Sonic would never do that to you."

"I know," Amy said, "The feeling doesn't last forever, though. It always goes away, eventually. However, whenever he leaves again, at another time, the feeling always comes back, only it's amplified, ten times worse than it was before. I don't know why I'm feeling this way. We've come so far in our relationship for me to feel this way."

"How long have you felt this way?" asked Cream.

"Ever since the beginning, I guess," Amy said, "I could never understand why I feel this way. I know he's always going to come back, that he'd never leave me, but a part of me just feels like he's trying to get away from me."

"It's like you keep saying, Amy," said Cream, as she stood to her feet, "Mr. Sonic would never do that to you. These feelings are just the part of you living in the past. I'm pretty sure you'll get over them."

"I hope so," she said, letting out another sigh, "I don't want to keep living like this forever."

"You won't" reassured Cream, "Trust me. Now, come on. Let's go do something!"

"Chao, Chao!" Cheese exclaimed, as he hovered by Cream's side.

"Okay," said Amy, as she stood to her feet. "What would you like to do?"

Cream thought about it for a moment. She didn't know where to go, especially at this time in the morning. It was too early to get any ice cream or anything.

"How about we just go for a walk," Amy suggested, "It's such a nice day, so we should enjoy it, don't you think?"

"Agreed," said Cream, nestling Cheese in her arms. "Let's go to the lake!"

The two of them nodded their heads in agreement and began heading down the hill towards the lake, completely unaware that a dark figure, standing in an alleyway, across the street from the park, was watching their every move.


	6. Chapter 5: Making Preparations

Sonic, Tails and Knuckles found themselves sitting on the train, heading back towards the city. Sonic didn't really like taking public transportation, mainly because he felt that they were too slow for his liking. However, he decided to take the train, mainly because Tails and Knuckles weren't able to match his speed. Ergo, he sat in a train car with his two best friends. Ever since they had left the station until now, the three of them hadn't said a word to each other; they sat in silence almost the whole journey to Station Square.

"So, Sonic," said Tails, deciding to break the ice, "Are you really sure you want to go through with this? I mean, marriage is a big commitment, you know. Are you absolutely sure you're ready for it?"

Sonic nodded, as he looked at his feet. He was confident that he and Amy were ready for this. The thoughts of him, standing in an altar, in a fine-looking suit, and Amy, walking down the aisle in a long, white wedding dress began to make him blush. Knuckles had detected this and began to chuckle at him.

"Look at you," said Knuckles, knocking Sonic, lightly, in the arm with his fist, "You're turning red so much that your blue is beginning to change color! You're really confident about this, aren't you?"

"I am confident," said Sonic, as he looked at him, "I really think we're ready for this. We've been together for seven months. I think that now is a reasonable time, don't you guys think so?"

Tails and Knuckles, both nodded their heads in agreement. They knew that Sonic and Amy were in love and that marriage was the best way to seal the bond that they had strongly built together. However, they knew that there were a few factors that could affect their commitment to each other.

"How are you guys going to get married if you're always going out, saving the world and such?" asked Tails, "We know how it makes you feel when she comes along with you."

"I know," said Sonic, "Amy doesn't like it when I go off and leave her behind. It makes me upset, knowing that she's upset when I leave. It's not like I always leave her behind."

"No kidding," teased Knuckles, "No matter how many times you beg her to stay behind, she always finds a way to convince you to take her with you. Is there ever a time when she hasn't come along on one of your adventures?"

Sonic thought about it for a moment. As far as he was concerned, he couldn't think of a time when Amy didn't come along. After several moments of checking his memory bank, and coming up empty, he let out a sigh and hung his head.

"No, I can't think of a time when she hasn't come along," Sonic said, in defeat.

"Well, if you two get married, then you know for a fact that she's always going to go with you," said Tails, "Regardless of what you say or do to convince her otherwise."

"I know," said Sonic, "I don't really like it when she comes along. I would never be able to forgive myself if something happened to her and I didn't help her in time."

Knuckles knocked him on his arm again. "Lighten up, will you? We all know that you won't let anything happen to her. The fact that you've kept her safe for the past seven months is a clear indication of that, wouldn't you agree."

Sonic smiled and nodded. As much as Sonic and Knuckles disagreed and argued over, pretty much, everything, he knew that Knuckles was right. He had kept Amy safe from danger for this long, so he was confident that he could keep her safe for the rest of their lives.

"Besides," said Tails, "Do you even have a ring, yet?"

"Not yet," said Sonic, a small flicker of a smile forming in the corner of his mouth, "But I've been looking at one at the local jewelry store. I've had it on hold for a while and was hoping you guys could give me some input on it."

Tails and Knuckles nodded, just as the train came to a stop at the city's station. The three of them got off the train and headed to the street. Then, they began walking down the street for a few blocks until they reached their destination: a small jewelry shop. When they went in, they were surrounded by several different cases of fine jewelry and diamonds beyond all belief. Because the sun was shining outside, many of the jewels and diamonds glimmered with the colors of the rainbow, reflecting off the walls and onto the ceiling.

After a few minutes of looking around, Sonic, Tails and Knuckles went up to the counter, where an old man was standing, waiting for them.

"Hello, Sonic," he said, his mustache hiding his smile, "What can I help you with today?"

"I'm here to see the ring, again," he said, "I've brought my friends along so they can help me make up my mind."

The old man chuckled, "You know, if I had a dollar for every time you looked at this ring, you would have had enough to buy it already."

Then, he pulled out a small velvet box from behind the counter. Then, he opened it to show the three of them the ring that was inside. The ring was made of gold and the jewel in the center was a pink sapphire, cut in the shape of a small heart. Tails and Knuckles looked at it in astonishment, for they had never seen a ring like that before.

"So, what do you guys think?" Sonic asked, "Do you think Amy will like it?"

"Without a doubt," said Tails, "It looks really pretty, and the fact that it's a pink sapphire will really make her happy. You know how much pink is her favorite color."

"I know," said Sonic, with a smile, "Alright, I'll take it."

A few minutes later, the three of them left the jewelry store. Sonic held the small velvet box in the palm of his hand. Soon, the three of them began walking down the road, heading towards a hardware store for Tails; he needed a few supplies there. As they walked, Sonic had a smile across his face. His heart was racing, as the thoughts of Amy's reaction to the proposal began racing through his mind.

"So," said Knuckles, "Have you thought about when and where you're going to propose to Amy?"

"I sure have," said Sonic, as he put the ring away, "I was planning on proposing to her at Emerald Coast, when the sun starts setting, sort of like when we first began dating."

"That's really sweet," said Tails, a smile on his face, "What about 'when?'"

Sonic immediately stopped walking. His heart had begun racing again, as sweat drops began forming on the back of his neck. He wasn't really sure when he wanted to propose. In truth, he had never really thought about when he wanted to.

"Oh, well...um...you see...er..." Sonic stammered, as he twiddled his thumbs together, "In truth, I really don't know..."

Tails raised an eyebrow as Knuckles slapped his open palm on his forehead.

"You mean to say that you don't know when you want to propose?" asked Tails.

"I've...well...I've never given that much thought, to be honest," said Sonic, as he turned his back to them.

"You've got to be kidding me!" exclaimed Knuckles, "It has to be soon, you know, or have you forgotten about your competition?"

Sonic's eyes grew wide, the moment that the words left Knuckles' mouth. Then, he said, "I have to go."

As they watched Sonic take off down the road, creating a sonic boom as he did, Tails turned to Knuckles, who had his hands over his mouth in shock.

"Way to go, knucklehead," he said, "Just when he was starting to put all that behind him, you have to open your big mouth."


	7. Chapter 6: No Reason

Sonic began running as fast as his legs could carry him, and for him, that was extremely fast. His heart began to race, as the buildings, cars and pedestrians moved past him in nothing but lines of color. The words Knuckles had said kept echoing in his head, causing his heart to beat faster than his legs were moving.

_I can't believe how stupid I am to forget him,_ thought Sonic, as he continued to run, _He hasn't been around for months now, which means that he can show up at any second. I need to find Amy, and fast!_

He continued to run, turning left on Main Street, heading towards the park. His instincts were telling him that Amy was there, even though he didn't know that for sure. As he ran, the images of his "competition" began flooding his thoughts, causing him to clench his fists. He felt worry and anger flooding throughout his body, causing the adrenaline to flood in much higher intervals, in turn, causing him to run even faster than before.

All of a sudden, a thought came across his mind, causing him to stop running and skid all the way down the street to the park in one long skid, creating a long black mark on the street. When he stopped skidding, he found himself in front of the park entrance, which was a large bronze gate.

He had stopped running and slowly began walking towards the nearest bench he could see. For once in his life, he was out of breath from running. He may have been, "the fastest thing alive," but he had never found himself running that fast before. As a result, he staggered over to the closest park bench and sat down, panting as he did so.

"What on Earth am I doing?" he asked himself aloud, in between pants. He leaned forwards, hanging his head between his legs and breathing heavily. After several minutes of recuperation, he finally stood up.

"Why am I worrying about this?" he said aloud, as he began to walk into the park, exploring the luscious, green trees as he did so. "I'm worrying over nothing. He hasn't been heard from in the seven months we've been together. I'm pretty sure that he's long forgotten about her by now, or put her behind him."

A flicker of a smile came across his face, as he began walking along the bike/walk trail of the park, which spanned the entire length of the park. He sighed in relief, as the thoughts of worry and fear, quickly left his body.

"Besides," he said aloud, as a couple of joggers passed him, "If Ames heard anything from him, she'd let me know in an instant. We haven't even seen him in the past seven months, so that must mean he's given up on her."

Then, a small wave of guilt overflowed his body, like an electric current. "I do, kind of, feel bad for him though. I mean, all things considered, he _did_ love her, supposedly. I hope he found the happiness he was looking for. He was really bent out of shape the last I saw of him."

After a while, he stopped walking and sat on the nearest bench. He wasn't tired or anything, but he just needed a moment to think. He closed his eyes and let out a small deep breath. He stopped thinking about _him_, and began focusing on what was more important. He pulled out the small velvet box and looked at the ring inside.

"I know that, once I propose to Amy, everything will change," he said aloud, "Not only will I need to be there for her more than I already am, but I'll need to protect her a lot more. I'm confident that we can make this work, but I know for a fact, it's not going to be easy."

He closed his eyes and smiled, as the thoughts of the two of them, standing in the altar, love in their eyes, began flooding his thoughts again. As he continued to think about his sweet vision, he felt the blood begin to flush his cheeks. He had never really been one to consider marriage to anyone, let alone Amy. Not that he was against the idea, but he had never really stopped and thought about it very often. However, his thoughts were interrupted, as the sound of someone calling him brought him back to reality.

"Hey, Sonic!" shouted a voice from behind him. Sonic turned his head to see Tails and Knuckles running up towards him, both of them with worried expressions on their faces.

"Are you okay?" asked Tails, "We'd never seen you run away that fast before! Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine, buddy," said Sonic, as he smiled, "I was just worrying over nothing, that's all."

"I'm really sorry about that, Sonic," said Knuckles, as he scratched the back of his head, "I didn't mean to startle you like that. I was only joking around, you know?"

"It's alright, Knuckles," said Sonic, "It was my fault for taking it too seriously. I shouldn't be worrying about that now. Besides, we haven't even heard from him for seven months now. I'm sure he's long forgotten about it by now or he's gotten over it. Either way, it's not a factor anymore."

Tails nodded his head, as his attention was brought to the box in his hand. "What were you doing, fantasizing about your marriage to Amy?"

Sonic began blushing again. He wasn't really the type to be daydreaming at all, but whenever he did, it usually was about Amy.

"So," said Knuckles, "You're proposing tomorrow, then?"

"I want to," said Sonic, "But I'm extremely nervous about it."

"What for?" asked Tails, "You already know she's going to say 'yes!' What are you worried about?"

Sonic sighed and said, "I don't know, but I'm worried, that's all."

Tails walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder and said, "Are you really sure you want to go through with this? Are you really sure this is what you want?"

Sonic smiled, closing the box with the one hand that held it and said, "Definitely."

He had just put the box away when the three of them heard the sound of a voice, calling Sonic's name. The three of them turned their heads to see Amy and Cream beginning to run up to them.

"Speaking of which," said Knuckles, "There's your wife-to-be now."

"Shut up, Knuckles," said Tails, as he nudged his elbow into his chest, causing him to stammer back a few steps.

"Hey Sonic, what are you doing here?" asked Amy, as she sat next to him and threw her arms around his neck.

"Hey Ames," he said, returning the embrace. Then, Amy loosened her grip and kissed Sonic on the lips. Cream and Tails giggled at the sight, as Knuckles rolled his eyes and moaned in disgust. As a result, Tails nudged him in the chest again.

"Amy," said Sonic, when their kiss ended, "Can I ask you something, in private?"

"Sure, Sonic," said Amy, as the two of them got up and began walking down the bike/walk trail. When they were several steps away from the other, just out of earshot, they stopped walking.

"What's wrong, Sonic?" asked Amy, as a worried look came across her face.

"Amy," said Sonic, "I need to know something. Have you heard from...um...you know..._him_?"

Amy raised an eyebrow and asked, "Who?"

"You know," said Sonic, as he twiddled his thumbs, "_Him._"

Amy thought about it for a second, trying to figure out who _he_ was. After several moments, her eyes grew wide and her heart began to race.

"You mean…" she began to ask. However, Sonic cut her off before she could say his name.

"Yes," he said, "Have you heard anything from him?"

Amy shook her head and said, "No, of course not. Why?"

Sonic sighed in relief and threw his arms around her waist. The moment they began their embrace, she stopped worrying and nestled her head in his chest.

"No reason," he said, letting out a soft sigh of relief, "No reason at all."


	8. Chapter 7: Discussion

Cream, Tails and Knuckles watched, as Sonic and Amy began conversing with one another in private. The three of them didn't know what they were talking about, so they all exchanged confused glances at one another.

After a few moments of silence, Cream said, "What's up with them?"  
"I'm not sure," said Tails, "Something must be up for them to speak in private."

"I'm pretty sure that it's nothing too important," said Knuckles, as he crossed his arms, "They're probably talking about what they want to do together tonight, or something."

"You're probably right," said Tails, as they watched Sonic and Amy embrace one another, "It's probably none of our concern anyway."

The three of them nodded and smiled. They were pretty sure that there wasn't anything wrong at the moment.

"So, Miles," said Cream, calling Tails by his real first name, "How's it been? I haven't heard from you guys in a while."

"Everything's fine, Cream" said Tails, as he smiled back, "Nothing new going on lately."

"Sure there wasn't," said Knuckles, sarcastically, "That is, if you consider the planet being broken into multiple pieces, 'nothing.'"

Tails let out a soft chuckle, "Okay, so there have been a few mishaps here and there, but either than that, nothing out of the ordinary has been going on."

The three of them stopped and looked at Sonic and Amy, still in their tight embrace, looking at each other will love in their eyes. As they did, Cream let out a soft, romantic sigh.

"Don't they just look cute together?" she asked, as she began blushing.

"Yeah, they sure do," said Tails, "They really look happy to be with each other."

"It's so hard to believe that we're the reason they wound up together in the first place," said Cream, "If it wasn't for us, they wouldn't be standing there, holding each other with so much love."

Knuckles moaned and rolled his eyes. It wasn't that he wasn't happy for the two of them, because he was. It was because he found himself to be jealous. He was the only one, out of the three, who didn't have anyone to call his own. Even though Tails and Cream weren't, what one would call, "a couple," they were still very close friends. Knuckles had no one at the moment, so every time he saw happy couples, he'd always feel a bit jealous.

"Don't worry, Knuckles," said Tails, as he patted him on the back, "You'll find someone to call your own, someday."

"Yeah, right," said Knuckles, as he crossed his arms, "That'll be the day when pigs fly."

Cream and Tails couldn't help but let out a soft giggle at his statement. When they were done, they noticed Sonic and Amy beginning to walk over to them.

"Hey, you two," said Tails, with a smile, "What's up?"

"Nothing really," said Sonic, "Just spending time with Amy, that's all."

Amy smiled and said, "We were going to get some ice cream. Do you guys want to come?"

In unison, both Tails and Cream said, "Yes." Then, the two of them eyed each other and blushed. Again, Knuckles just rolled his eyes and moaned.

"No, thanks," said Knuckles, "Maybe some other time."

"Oh, come on, Knuckles," said Sonic, in a playful tone, "Come along with us. It'll be fun, trust me!"

"Sorry, but I'm not in the mood, right now," said Knuckles, "Besides, I have other things to do anyway. You guys can go along and I'll go with you next time."

With that, Knuckles turned and began walking away. The four of them exchanged glances at one another, not sure why Knuckles was acting that way.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" asked Amy, as she turned to face Sonic.

"I think he'll be just fine," said Sonic, "You know our Knuckles."

Soon, the four of them began walking out of the park and headed towards the city. As they walked, Cream and Amy tailed behind while Sonic and Tails walked ahead.

"What was that all about?" whispered Cream to Amy, "Is everything alright?"

"I think so," answered Amy, "It's strange, though. He asked me if I had heard from…_him_."

"Who?" asked Cream, as she raised an eyebrow at her best friend.

"You know who," said Amy, as her eyes slightly widened a little bit.

Cream thought for a moment, not really sure who Amy was talking about. She scratched the back of her head in confusion. After several minutes, she glanced back at Amy and shrugged her shoulders.

"Sorry, Amy, but I don't know who you're talking about," she said, as she held her hands behind her back.

Amy, quickly, glanced at Sonic, making sure he was out of earshot. When she was confident that he couldn't hear her, she whispered, "Shadow."

Cream's eyes grew slightly wide for a moment. She was surprised that Sonic would have asked her if she had heard from him. Then, her shocked expression quickly turned into a look of confusion.

"Why didn't you just say his name in the first place?" she asked, "You act like you're not allowed to say his name."

Amy slightly blushed and said, "It was my idea not to use his name. We try to leave what he did in the past, so I suggested that we don't say his name anymore."

"Why's that?" asked Cream.

Amy sighed and hung her head. She didn't really like explaining why she didn't say Shadow's name. She had a hard time explaining it when Sonic had asked her many months ago, and Cream was no different.

"Well," she said, as she twiddled her thumbs, "You see, I didn't really like what he did seven months ago. He acted as if he loved me, yet he tried to take me away from the only guy I really care about. I guess you can say that I banned his name out of anger."

Cream couldn't help but feel bad. She remembered how he acted, way back when, and it wasn't a pretty sight. Ever since then, none of them had seen or heard from him; it was almost like he'd fallen off the face of the earth. All-in-all, Cream knew, in the back of her mind, that it was mainly her fault for Shadow to act that way in the first place.

"It's my fault that he acted that way, you know," mumbled Cream, "If it hadn't have been for that stupid challenge, he'd never would have acted that way."

"Yes, that's true," said Amy, as she patted Cream on the back, "But look at the bright side: that same 'stupid challenge' brought Sonic and I together!"

Cream smiled, "Yeah, that's true, too."

The two of them giggled, as they sped up their pace and joined Sonic and Tails. As the four of them continued to walk, the dark figure, that had been watching Amy and Cream before, continued to watch them.


	9. Chapter 8: Regrets

The day seemed to pass by like it was set on hyper drive. Before anyone in the city knew it, the day had quickly dissolved into evening. The sun was beginning to set along the horizon, causing the sky to turn from its natural blue color to a burnt orange. The small clouds that were there went from white to many different shades of pink, red and yellow. During this time of the day, it was a beautiful sight to behold.

As the sun began its slow decent into the horizon, Sonic and Amy sat and marveled at its beauty. They were sitting in a field now, far from the city limits. It was a field where no one really went to, only because they didn't want to ruin the sea of colorful wild flowers that were there; each one was a different color and a different type. Sonic and Amy loved to come here, when they wanted to be alone for a while.

As the two of them sat there, gazing at the beautiful sunset, Amy couldn't help but rest her head on Sonic's shoulder. As she did so, she let out a loving sigh.

"It's really beautiful, isn't it, Sonic?" she asked, as she looked up to him.

"Yes it is, Ames," he said, meeting her gaze, "But not as beautiful as you."

Amy smiled, as she leaned in and pressed her lips against his. They shared a passionate kiss for a few moments before, reluctantly, pulling away from each other.

"There isn't anywhere in the world I'd rather be, than here in your arms," she said, wrapping her right arm around his shoulders.

"Me neither," he said, as he pecked her forehead.

The two of them sat there in each other's arms for many minutes now, staring at the sunset, then back at each other. The sun began to slowly disappear over the horizon now. The sky began turning a dark blue, as the stars began to twinkle, one by one. They weren't worried or rushed by this at all, for the glowing of the moon overhead emulated enough light for the two of them to see each other perfectly.

As Sonic and Amy continued to sit there, a feeling began to rush over Amy, making her shiver from head to toe. For some reason, she began thinking about what she and Cream had been talking about earlier that day. She was reminded of how she felt when Sonic had left her and she began to wonder something.

"Are you cold, Ames?" asked Sonic, as he responded to her shivering, "If you are, we can go, if you want."

"No, no. It's okay," said Amy, as she bundled herself into his shoulder, "I'm just thinking, that's all."

Sonic sensed that something was wrong, mainly because he heard a small tinge of sadness in her voice.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, as he looked her in the eyes. Her eyes began to sparkle, as the light of the moon reflected off them.

"No, everything's fine," she said, forcing a weary smile.

Sonic let out a frustrated sigh and said, "Forgive me for sounding 'up-front,' but if something's bothering you, you should tell me so I can help you."

Amy sighed and hung her head. She didn't want to ask him what she had been thinking at the moment, mainly because she didn't want to put any ideas in his head. Her reluctance to answer filled Sonic's mind with suspicion, which would only lead him to press her until she answered him.

"Alright," she said, before Sonic could say anything, "Can I ask you a very truthful question?"

"Sure," said Sonic, as he straightened his posture, "What's up?"

Amy fondled with the quills on the back of her head. Her heart raced and pounded on her chest, unsure of what Sonic was going to say.

"Do you promise not to get mad at me?" she asked, worry clouding her voice.

Sonic raised an eyebrow and said, "Yes, I do."

With that, Amy sighed one last time and asked, "Do you regret being with me?"

The words hit Sonic like a slap in the face. His eyes widened with shock and his heart began to race fast. He stared at Amy with a shocked expression, not really sure if she was joking around or if she was serious, even though she said it was a 'truthful question.'

"You're kidding, right?" asked Sonic, "What on Earth would make you feel that way?"

"Answer my question, first," she said, finally meeting his gaze.

Sonic scoffed and said, "No, I don't regret being with you. Why on Earth would you think I'd ever regret being with you?"

Amy hung her head and said, "I don't know. I just feel like you make excuses not to be around me sometimes, you know."

"EXCUSES!?" shouted Sonic, "I'd NEVER make excuses!"

"Sure you don't," said Amy, sarcastically, as she crossed her arms, "Just like you claim you were 'teleported' into that storybook and, just-so-happened, to miss our date, right?"

Sonic sighed in frustration, "That really happened, Amy!"

"Sure it did," said Amy, as she turned her back on him.

"Why are you acting this way?" Sonic asked, trying to calm himself down, "Where did all this come from? You weren't like this all day! Why all of a sudden are you accusing me of regretting being with you?"

"I don't know," said Amy, softly, "I guess it's because a part of me is still living in the past. I'm just afraid of losing you again. I've waited my whole life to be with you and it just seems like you don't want me around, or you're trying to get away from me."

"When have I ever 'not wanted you around?'" asked Sonic.

"You always try to make me sit out whenever you go off on some adventure," argued Amy, "You know how much I want to go with you, but you're so keen on keeping me here."

"That's because I love you," said Sonic, "I love you to the point where I don't want anything bad to happen to you! I never wanted to make you feel like I'm rejecting you! I apologize if I made you feel that way, but I assure you, it wasn't to hurt you!"

Amy felt small tears begin to fall from the corners of her eyes. She wiped them with the back of her hand and said, "I just don't want to lose you."

To Amy's surprise, she felt Sonic's arms wrap around her in a tight embrace. She leaned her forehead into his chest, feeling the small tears continuing to fall from her eyes.

"You're not going to lose me," he said in a soft tone, "I made you a promise that I'd never hurt you or break your heart, and I'm going to keep that promise."

She looked up to his eyes. Because of the tears, her eyes appeared to sparkle a lot more now, making them look even more beautiful. Sonic smiled at her, as pecked her lips with his.

"Sorry about that," she whispered, "I don't know what came over me."

"It's okay," he said, as he stood up, "Let's go home."

"Okay," she said, as she stood up as well, "If it's not too much to ask, can you spend the night with me again?"

Sonic sighed and said, "Of course."

He scooped her off her feet and into his arms. Then, he ran towards the city, carrying her in his arms, completely unaware that, all this time, they were being watched.


	10. Chapter 9: Patience

His eyes shot open, bloodshot and with bags underneath them, as the morning sun peered through the window. If there was one thing he was a stranger to in the past several months, it was the ability to get a decent night's sleep. For as long as he could remember, every night that had gone by prevented him from sleeping. The main cause was from the dreams he kept having; although they weren't nightmares, they had nightmare qualities to them. As a result, on this morning, like every morning, he awoken with his heart racing and anger running through his veins.

Soon, he sat up and looked out the window that was to his left. The sun was bright and the day was full of life. Birds were chirping and the wild flowers that grew outside were vibrant and full of life. However, none of this mattered to him. The only thing that pulsed through his body was one small word: revenge.

He got up from his queen-sized bed and left his wide room to the hallway. From there, he made his way to the kitchen and smelled something that was rather good and refreshing. When he got in his extremely large kitchen, with an island in the center and all the necessary components around it, he saw what smelled so good.

A black coffee pot was brewing and the stove-top was in full swing. On the range were several strips of bacon being sizzled, filling the air with their rich scent. Mixed with the smell of the coffee being brewed, he couldn't help but smile and inhale, taking in all the good smells.

"Good morning," said a female voice by the island, "I hope you don't mind, but I've already started making breakfast."

Sitting on one of the stools around the island was a seventeen-year-old bat girl. Her blue-green eyes were wide and full of dazzle. She had large ears on both sides of her head and two big wings on her back. She wore a pink bathrobe, slightly opened in the front, showing a little bit of her chest from within. As he approached and sat next to her she batted her eyelashes at him and smiled.

"Hello Rouge," said the black hedgehog, his voice deep and raspy sounding, "No, I don't mind that you made breakfast. I've come to like your cooking, as a matter of fact."

She got up and attended to the food as he sat there and watched her.

After she was done, she turned to him and said, "Did you sleep well or were you up all night again?"

"I slept a little," he said, turning his back on her, "Maybe for a few hours, but…"

"But," she interrupted, "You were dreaming about Amy Rose again, isn't that right, Shadow?"

"What makes you say that?" he asked, turning to face her.

Without answering, she opened the drawer next to the refrigerator and pulled out a small mirror and handed it to him. He looked at it and inspected his physique. His black fur was all scrawny looking and all over the place. His black and red-striped quills were all scruffy looking and all over the place. There were dark circles under his eyes and veins all around his red irises. In short, he didn't look too good.

"Alright, so I don't look like a basket of roses," he said, handing her the mirror, "But what makes you think I was dreaming about Amy, again?"

"Because," she said, as she continued making breakfast, "Omega and I, both, heard you saying her name in your sleep again. It's pretty obvious you were dreaming about her, isn't that right, Omega?"

Shadow turned his head and looked behind him. In the opposite doorway of the kitchen stood a really large robot, with massive arms, red eyes and chicken-like legs. On one of his arms was the Greek "Omega" symbol in red and on his side were the numbers: E-123.

Shadow got up and opened the silver and black refrigerator. He fished around for a moment until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a large bottle with a green-colored fluid inside of it. Then, he pulled out a small glass from the closet and poured it into the glass. Finally, he opened the freezer and put a few ice-cubes in it.

"Hold up a second, Shadow," protested Rouge, "What are you drink-"

"It's Mountain Dew, Rouge," he said, as he shot her a dirty look, "Relax."

With that, he walked into the living room, sat on the couch and lounged back, sipping his drink and sighing heavily. Rouge and Omega exchanged worried glances at one another, even though Rouge couldn't tell if Omega's face was worried or not. They both knew what had happened to Shadow some months ago and both of them felt worried. No one knew what Shadow was thinking; all they knew was that he was bidding his time, waiting for something to happen.

Without hesitation, Rouge removed whatever food was cooking off the stove and accompanied Shadow on the leather couch in the extravagantly enormous living room, complete with a 60" flat-screen television, a leather couch and love seat and a coffee table in the dead center of everything. Large windows surrounded the room, creating a vast amount of light to come in.

"What's wrong, Shadow?" asked Rouge, as she put her hand on his shoulders, "You seem troubled about something. Is there something you'd like to talk about?"  
Shadow huffed as he said, "Everything's fine, so quit asking."

Rouge shook her head. "Shadow, look at yourself. We live in a big villa with almost everything we could ever want and yet you seem so miserable all the time, especially in the past few months. Is this girl even worth any of this?"

Shadow furrowed his eyebrows. "She's worth everything to me."  
"You need to let her go, Shadow," she said, crossing her arms, "If you really love her like you say you do, you'd let her be happy with Sonic and…"

"NEVER SAY THAT NAME IN THIS HOUSE!" shouted Shadow, cutting her off. His quick outburst caught Rouge off guard, startling her into silence for a moment.

After a few moments, she continued, "The point is that you need to put her behind you and move on. There are other fish in the sea, you know…some closer than others."

Shadow shook his head and said, "I can't let her go. Believe me, I've tried so hard to pretend like I don't know her, like the feelings I have never existed. However, the more I try to forget her, the more I realize that we need each other. She deserves better than that fake advertisement, that faker."

Then, an evil smile came across his face. "Luckily for me, I've been able to devise the perfect strategy to pull them away for each other, for her to see just how much she doesn't love him."

"Is that so?" asked Rouge, "And how, may I ask, do you plan on doing that?"

"All in due time," he said, the evil smile still on his face, "I've been watching them since they started dating each other. I know that he's willing to do anything to keep her out of danger. Little does he know that his own worry will be his ultimate undoing."

"Shadow?" she asked, worry in her voice, "What are you up to, now?"

"Patience is a virtue," he answered, leaning back some more, "All in due time. By later this afternoon, a special news broadcast will be aired. As soon as it's done and the two of them watch it, the real fun will begin."

Rouge still looked worried. "What kind of broadcast? What have you done?"

"I've only done what I must," answered Shadow, as he flipped on the television, "I swore to myself that Amy Rose would someday be mine. I've waited seven long and pain-staking months for this window of opportunity to arise. Now that it has, my perfect plan will come into full effect."


	11. Chapter 10: Departure

Amy awoke to find herself alone in her bed. The moment her eyes shot open, and saw that Sonic was not by her side, she began to panic. She didn't know where he was or what he was doing. Immediately, she sprung out of bed, put on her pink robe and hurried down stairs, hoping that Sonic was still there.

When she was halfway down the stairs, her heart began to ease down, for she had heard that the television in the other room was on. She scampered down the stairs and into the living room. There, she saw Sonic, sitting on the black, leather couch, watching the television with a stern look on his face. Immediately, she began to worry again.

"Sonic, what's wrong?" she asked, as she sat next to him. He didn't answer for his main focus was still on the broadcast. He was watching a news report that had just been aired that morning. As a result, his focus was primarily on what was happening.

Amy turned to the television and watched what was happening. On the screen was a helicopter view of a city in a desert. The people there were all fleeing away in fear, for hundreds of giant robotic creatures were roaming around, all of them red with giant blue eyes, a smile-like look on their faces and needle-shaped swords in their hands. As Amy watched, she listened to the news reporter.

_"No one knows where these robots came from or why they're here,"_ said the reporter, _"But the Shamaran villagers are running scared and the robots don't seem to be letting up. There have been no reports of injuries or casualties yet, but one can only hope that these robotic monstrosities are stopped before any real harm can happen! We'll keep you posted on the hour for any new updates on this…"_

Immediately, Sonic shut off the television. It was clear who had sent those robots, judging by the looks of them.

"So, Eggman's at it again," said Sonic, a smile appearing on his face, "Well, I guess that means it's time to put an end to his demented game."

"I agree," said Amy, as she began making her way upstairs.

Sonic watched, as she scampered back up the stairs and into her bedroom. He waited there for a moment, wondering what she was doing. After a few moments, he heard her coming out of her room and scurrying down the stairs again. When she returned, she was dressed in her red dress and boots. In her hands, she held her famous Piko-Piko Hammer, as oversized as it was.

"Ready to go, Sonic," said Amy, a smile on her face, "When are we leaving."

Sonic didn't say anything to her. He stood there, with a firm look on his face. He sighed and hung his head, shaking it as he did so. After a few moments, he finally turned to her and shook his head again.

"What?" she asked, not fully understanding what he was saying. Sonic crossed his arms this time and shook his head again, a stern look still on his face. It was only then that Amy seemed to get the message. As she did, her eyes grew wide in horror.

"If you think that I'm going to sit this one out, Sonic the Hedgehog, you've got another thing coming to you," she said, her eyes widened and her voice firm.

"Please, Amy," said Sonic in a pleading voice, "Please, sit this one out. I can do this on my own. It'll only be a few days, I promise."

"A FEW DAYS!" she shrieked, dropping her hammer, "Now you know I'm coming with you! I'm not going to sit here, waiting and wondering what's happening to you for 'a few days.'"

"You're acting like it's the end of the world, or something," said Sonic.

"It IS the end of the world," she said, her voice cracking into worry, "Give me one good reason why I should sit this one out. What makes this any different than the times before?"

"It's too dangerous," argued Sonic, "It's not like it's anywhere near here. This is all the way in Shamar, several continents away. It's way too dangerous for you to come along."

"Forget it, Sonic," she said, tears beginning to leak from her eyes, "I'm coming with you, whether you like it or not."

"Please," he began to beg again, "I don't ask for much in this relationship. The least you could do is sit this one out, for me. Please."

"No," said Amy, as she crossed her arms and turned her back on him, "I'm going, whether you like it or not."

Sonic sighed and held his head in his hand. "Is this still about yesterday? If it is, then I'm sorry. I'm not trying to get away from you or whatever. I just want you to be safe."

"I don't care," she said, sadness and worry in her voice, "I'm going with you, even if that means I have to handcuff myself to you."

"Well, that's a little extreme," Sonic mumbled to himself as he let out another sigh.

"When are we leaving?" Amy asked again, turning to face him.

"Please," he said again, "What do I have to do to convince you to stay here?"

"There's nothing you can say or do," she argued, "I'm going with you."

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am!"

"Amy, please, don't do this."

"I'M GOING AND THAT'S FINAL!"

Unable to control herself, she burst out into tears and fell to her knees. Immediately, Sonic rushed over to her, wrapping his hands around her body. As she cried, she rested her head on his shoulder, the tears running from her eyes and down his back. All the while, Sonic rubbed her back and tried to comfort her, even though he knew it wasn't doing any good.

"Let me go," she whispered through tears, "Don't leave me here, alone. I can't live without you, Sonic. Please, let me go."

"You don't mean that," he said softly, "You can live without me for a few days."

"No, I can't," she said, "Don't do this to me."

He tightened his grip on her in an embrace. She tightened her grip too, intent on not letting him go. However, she knew he had a point; He never asked for anything in the entire time they were together. She owed him so much, but she didn't want to be left alone.

"Please," he whispered, "Just sit this one out and I'll never ask you to do it again, I promise."

She looked up to him again. "On one condition: You come back to me as soon as you can. Don't stay longer than you need to."

Sonic smiled, "You're silly, you know that, but still, I promise I won't. I'll come back to you as soon as I can."

Sonic tried to stand up, but found that Amy's grip on him was still firm and reluctant to let go. After several more minutes of struggling, she reluctantly, let go of him.

"I'll call you as soon as I get there and as soon as the job is done," he said, as he began making his way to the door.

"I'll be waiting," said Amy, her voice soft and her eyes still tearing, "I love you."

"I love you too," he said, as he opened the door, "Always and forever."

With that, Sonic closed the door behind him and took off. Amy stood there in the doorway of the living room, hearing the "sonic boom" in the distance. She made her way to the couch and sat there, listening to the dead silence of the room. As she did, her heart began to race again, as the loneliness she had felt before came back, only now, it was worse. She began hyperventilating, as her heart began to race faster than before.

"Be still, my heart," she whispered, as she put her hand on her chest. She tried to relax and calm herself down, but to no avail.

She was alone again, and she couldn't stand a moment of it.


	12. Chapter 11: Out of the Darkness

Rouge sat and watched the news broadcast with widened eyes. She was dressed now, in her usual black and pink apparel and knee-high boots. She sat on the brown leather couch, her hands over her mouth, as she watched what was happening. It wasn't so much that robots were attacking innocent people of the Shamaran village, but the idea that Shadow had something to do with it made her worry beyond all belief.

Every now and then, she'd turn to Shadow, who was standing in front of a large window, staring at the garden outside. He didn't turn or meet her gaze, even though he knew she was looking at him. All the while, he stood at the window and stared, an evil grin across his face.

"Shadow?" she asked, as she turned off the television, "Please tell me you're not responsible for this!"

"Responsible for what?" he asked, faking concern, "You, of all people, should know that I don't have a massive army of robots to send to random villages! That's just not my style; that's Dr. Eggman's!"

"Save it, Shadow," Rouge interrupted, "I'm a G.U.N agent, you know! I know when you're lying and when you're telling the truth!"

"As am I," snapped Shadow, "What do you think pays for this villa we live in?"

"True," said Rouge, as she crossed her arms, "But I do know that you have a sub-contract with the doctor. You paid him to send those robots, didn't you?"

Shadow smiled an evil smile again. "Why, oh why, would I do a thing like that?"

Rouge let out a frustrated sigh and shook her head. "Why are you doing this? Why are you trying to pull them apart? It's wrong and messed up, and even that's an understatement!"

"This is divine justice!" said Shadow, as he turned his back on her, "He doesn't deserve her and I'm going to prove it, once and for all. I've been patiently waiting for this moment for so long. Now, it's time to set the plan in motion!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back it up, Shadow," interrupted Rouge, "Just how long _have_ you been 'planning' this?"

"I don't really know," Shadow shrugged, "Several months, I guess."

"Several months?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, "Seriously, Shadow, you need to get over this girl. Ever since the day she chose him over you, you've been on a revenge-seeking spree of insanity!"

"What's your point, Rouge?"

"The point is that, if you really love her, you'll let her go!"

Without hesitation, he turned to her and walked up to her, an evil glare in his eyes. Rouge, having a rather tough interior, stood her ground, even when he was only a few inched from her face.

"If there's one thing that I've learned during this time of solitude and rejection, it's this," he said, his voice firm, but almost in a whisper, "If you really want something, you have to be ready to fight for it, no matter the cost, no matter the consequences."

"That's all well and good," said Rouge, matching his tone, "But how far are you willing to go for her? There are limits, you know."

Shadow took a few steps back, turned and made for the door. He opened it and got ready to leave. Just before he did, he turned to her and said, "I'd kill for her."

Before she could say anything, he turned away and slammed the door. Unable to do anything, Rouge let out a deep sigh and sat down. As she did so, Omega, who was listening from the kitchen, slowly walked in.

"He's really determined to win her over, wouldn't you agree?" asked Omega, in his deep robotic voice.

"'Determined' isn't the right word for it," she said, as she sat back, "'Insane' or 'out-of-control' seems to fit the bill."

Omega walked into the room and sat next to Rouge, or at least he tried to. He had a feeling he knew why she was so determined to break him away from Amy, not just for their sake, but for her own. Even though he didn't have enough proof to say anything, he still had a feeling about it.

"I don't know what we're going to do with him," she said, as she stood up. "All I know is that he needs to be stopped before he does something that he's going to regret."

"As much as I don't agree with what Shadow is doing," he said, as he approached her, "What he said was plausible; 'If you want something, you have to willing to fight for it.'"

"It's an interesting philosophy," said Rouge, as she let out a sigh, "But it's still wrong. It doesn't mean that you have to do almost-criminal acts to get what you want."

She leaned back in the seat and sighed again. "There's got to be something we can do to stop this craziness before it gets out of hand. He needs to be taken out of the darkness and into the light, before he gets himself into some serious trouble."

"Look, Rouge," said Omega, "I want this to end just as much as you do, but there's nothing we can do. The only way we can stop him is to show him that there's other 'fish in the sea' besides Amy."

Rouges giant ears pricked up the moment the words left Omega's mouth, though he didn't have one. It was at that moment that she realized what she had to do to convince Shadow to stop.

"Omega, you're a genius!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his wide exterior, "The only way we're going to stop this madness is by showing him that there are other people in the world, some who are _better_ than Amy Rose!"

"As much as it's a good idea," Omega explained, "The probability of Shadow choosing another partner, besides Amy is 02.47%! You'd have to really pressure him in order to change his mind _in the slightest!_"

Rouge smiled her teasing smile and said, "If that's what we have to do, then that's what we'll have to do! I'll show him that Amy is second rate in comparison to other girls."

"You mean _you_?" asked Omega. If he had any eyebrows, he would have raised one. Rouge's cheeks went bright red the moment the words left Omega's mouth.

"_ME_?" she shrieked, "Of course not me! Shadow's not my type, you know. Why on Earth would I want him to fall in love with me?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she turned her back to Omega, trying to hide her bright-red cheeks. Then, another quick idea came into her head.

"However," she said, turning to Omega and smiling, "There's nothing saying that I can't be the one to get his attention, right? I mean, it's worth a shot and there's no one else willing to go along with it, so I guess that leaves me."

"If you say so," said Omega, as made a gesture that resembled a shrug, "So, what are you going to do?"

Rouge thought about it for a moment. Coming up blank, she finally said, "I guess we should head over to Amy's place. If I know Shadow, that's where he's heading."

With that, Rouge got up and began making her way to the door, Omega following close behind.


	13. Chapter 12: Eggman's Favor

Shadow walked down the long porch that was in front of his luxurious villa. As he did, the grin on his face remained, knowing that the time had come for him to separate Sonic and Amy from each other, once and for all. The idea of Amy, abandoning Sonic for him, overflowed his mind, causing him to smile and blush at the same time.

However, the sweet thoughts of the pink hedgehog nestling in his arms were short lived, when a thought had stuck his mind. He had overlooked something that was extremely important, and would almost jeopardize this mission.

"It'd only be a matter of time before he reaches the desert oasis and destroys all those robots," he said aloud, stopping in his tracks, "That doesn't give me a lot of time to win Amy over. I need to make sure he stays out of town for a little bit longer than a day or two."

He crossed his arms and sighed. "Good news is that I know of a way to postpone his return. Bad news is, though, that it might not go over too well with him. Oh well, the doctor owes this to me, anyway. I've done countless favors for him, so this is the least he could do to pay me back."

With that, he nodded his head and pulled out a green-colored jewel, most commonly known as a chaos emerald. Then, he raised it above his head and yelled out the words, "CHAOS CONTROL!" Almost instantaneously, a white light had flashed and Shadow was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Off the coast of Station Square, far out in the middle of nowhere, was a small island that no one knew about. It had a lot of trees, one giant mountain and water on all sides of it. It was small and close to invisible on any radar or map. On the coast of the island, a white light had flashed and Shadow had appeared.

He investigated his surroundings, making sure he hadn't attracted any attention. It was only a split second later that he remembered a simple fact: there was no one around to have seen him arrive. He let out a deep sigh and began making his way to the middle of the small island, preparing for the earful he was about to receive.

When he got to a certain point of the jungle, a small clearing where there was nothing but green grass, he stopped and knelt down near a tree stump. He felt around the stump, as if he was searching for an 'X' on a treasure map, with much eagerness. He moved his hand around until he felt what he was searching for; a small hatch knob, painted brown and green, so it could properly blend with its environment.

Shadow pulled on the knob and opened a wide door that was on the floor, revealing a dark set of stairs heading downward. Shadow began walking down the dark, steep steps, closing the hatch he had opened behind him. When the door was closed and locked, Shadow found himself in nothing but pitch-blackness; it was very hard to see anything around him. As a result, he felt around on one of the walls, searching again. It wasn't long until he felt a small light switch that was there. When he turned it on, he looked down at where he had to go.

The lights were perched all along the sides of the stairwell, heading downwards. Since the bulbs were quite old, and the walls around him were mainly made of the dirt from being underground, it glowed of an eerie brownish-orange color. All the way at the bottom of the stairwell, which was quite a long way down, was a small door. With no hesitation, and to save him some time, Shadow pulled out his chaos emerald again and used chaos control to go from the top of the stairs to the front of the door. Then, he took a deep breath again and opened the door and stepped in.

When Shadow walked through the door, he wasn't surprised by what he saw there. It was a large, wide-spaced area, almost like an airplane hanger, only underground. All over the place, there were red robots scampering about, some carrying heavy equipment and some working on giant robotic aircraft and monstrosities. In the far end of the room was another door with a sign that said "Do Not Disturb." With no hesitation, he activated his rocket skates and made his way to the door, pushing back any robot that got in his way.

When he got to the door, he stopped skating and stared at it, a stern look on his face. Then, he knocked three times on the door as hard as he could.

"Who's there?" a voice called from the other side of the door, "Can't you read the sign? I don't want to be disturbed right now, so get back to work!"

"Doctor Eggman," called out Shadow, "I need to speak with you. I assure you it's of the upmost importance."

"Shadow?" asked Eggman, "Why didn't you say it was you? Come on in!"

With that, Shadow opened the door and walked in. The room was small and had steel walls. There was a desk in the far wall and a window on the wall to Shadow's left. Behind the desk was a type of computer, but instead of using keys or a mouse, one would use their hands, since the monitor was a touch screen.

Sitting at the desk was a man who had a big nose, a long mustache and an enormous girth. He had mirrored glasses over his eyes and goggles atop his hairless head. He had a red jacket on with gold buttons that looked like they were ready to burst off at any given second. His name was Doctor Ivo Robotnik, but everyone called him Doctor Eggman instead, thanks to Sonic and a joke he had made a long time ago.

"Shadow," said Eggman, as he stood to his feet, "What seems to be the problem?"

"I'll spare the small talk and cut to the chase," said Shadow, as he crossed his arms, "Do you remember the 'little favor' I had asked of you about a week ago?"

"The robot attack in Shamar," said Eggman, "Of course I remember. What's wrong? Are those dumb robots lost or are they attacking the wrong village?"

"No, no, it's nothing like that," said Shadow, chuckling to himself, "They're in the right spot and everything is going according to plan."

"Very well," said Eggman, as he scratched his head, "Then, what seems to be the problem?"

"Well," said Shadow, "I've been doing a lot of thinking and something hit me. It appears that one miniscule attack in one village isn't going to be enough to occupy Sonic for the allotted timeframe that I need. As a result, I ask that you deploy another army of your robots to this location."

Shadow pulled out a rolled up piece of paper and handed it to Eggman. Eggman opened it up to see that it was a small map of the world. On the map, there was an island circled in red marker. Eggman raised his eyebrows in surprise, since the location was nearly on the other side of the world!

"ARE YOU INSANE!?" shouted Eggman, "That's WAY too far to send my robots! Besides, I don't have enough robots to spare! You're pushing you're authority, you pesky nuisance!"

"Please, Doctor," said Shadow, "I need you to do this one last favor for me! Sonic will have destroyed your robots in a heartbeat and will be back way before I can deploy my plans! Whether it's a hundred robots or just ten, I need a small amount at that location."

"I don't like this, Shadow," said Eggman, "Adabat is on the other side of the planet. Aside from that, you didn't even tell me WHY you need Sonic away from Station Square in the first place. You may be my greatest asset, but I demand to know why you're doing this!"

"Trust me, Doctor," said Shadow, as he crossed his arms again, "You're better off not knowing. Besides, I've never asked anything of you in my time of being your client, so that entitles me to a few 'special privileges.' So, are you going to help me, or not?"

Eggman scratched his chin. He wasn't really comfortable with the idea, but he knew that Shadow was right; he was always loyal to him and never asked anything of him until now.

"Alright Shadow," said Eggman, "I'll help you out, but this is the last time, deal?"

He extended his hand to Shadow. With a grin on his face, Shadow shook Eggman's hand and said, "Deal."

Shadow turned and began walking out. When he opened the door, he smiled to himself and said, "Now then, with that out of the way and taken care of, it's time to commence the next phase of my plan."


	14. Chapter 13: Center of the Universe

Amy sat on the couch, resting her head on the arm of the couch in the living room. She sat there, staring at the silver phone that she had resting on a table next to her. She stared at it, a saddened look upon her face. All the while, she kept sighing and looking at a time on the cable box next to the television before her. It seemed as if time had slowed down and everything else, for that matter.

"Where is he?" she asked aloud, looking back at the silver phone, "He should have gotten there by now. What's taking him so long?"

She stood up now and began making her way into the kitchen. Before she left, she took the phone and brought it with her, even though there was a phone in the kitchen already. Feeling a bit hungry, she placed the phone on the counter and went into the refrigerator, looking for something light to snack on.

Then, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest the moment she heard the phone beginning to ring. Ignoring the fact that she was just about starving, she rushed to the phone and pushed the green button to answer it.

"Sonic, is that you?" she asked, not bothering to look at the caller ID to make sure it was really him or not.

"Hey, Ames," said the voice on the other end, "Yes, it's me."

"What took you so long?" she asked, a hint of disappointment and annoyance in her voice, "You should have been there almost an hour ago! You had me worried sick! You're the fastest thing alive and yet you didn't get there until now? Explain yourself!"

There was a moment of silence as Amy finished her ranting. It appeared that Sonic was at a loss of words on the other end of the phone. Amy tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for a response from him, but she heard nothing.

After several moments of silence, Sonic finally let out a sigh said, "You've been waiting by the phone for me ever since I left, haven't you?"

Amy felt a rush fall over her; whether it was guilt or embarrassment, she couldn't tell, but she felt it. It was almost as if Sonic knew what she was doing, suggesting that she was THAT predictable.

Feeling that there was no way around it, she finally said, in a soft, guilty voice, "Yes."

Sonic let out another sigh and said, "Ames, how many times must I ask you? Don't do this, please!"

Twiddling her back quills, she asked, "Don't do what?"

Again, Sonic let out another deep sigh. "Don't make me the center of your universe. Don't make me the only thing you live for. You, sitting around and waiting for me is only going to make you feel worse. You know that, better than I do!"

"I'm sorry, Sonic," Amy said, in a soft voice, "I can't help myself. I've waited so long to be with you and…"

"I know, I know," said Sonic, interrupting her, "You're afraid of losing me. It's like I said before, you're not going to lose me. I'd never hurt you like that, never again."

"I know you wouldn't," she said, "It's just, whenever I'm alone, it feels like it did in the beginning, before we were together. It feels like you're still trying to get away from me."

Sonic let out a deep sigh and said, "I'm not trying to get away from you, Ames. You know me better than that. We've been together for seven months and not once have I ever tried to get away from you."

There was a moment of silence between them now, both of them not sure of what to say now. They both waited for the other to say something, yet neither of them said a word to each other.

After several more minutes of silence, Amy said, "So, you're there now?"

"Yes, I'm here," said Sonic, "It's pretty nice here, except for the heat. We're nowhere near the village though, so I need to get going."

"Okay, Sonic," she said, still in a soft tone, "Do what you've got to do."

"Alright," said Sonic, "I'll call you as soon as I'm done here and on my way back."

"Promise?" asked Amy.

Sonic couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle as he said, "Yes, Amy Rose, I promise. I'll talk to you later, my love."

"Talk to you later," said Amy, "I love you, Sonic."

"I love you, too" he said, "Always and forever."

Then, Amy heard a click from the other end of the phone. Even after he had hung up the phone, she still kept the phone to her ear. She kept it there until she heard the dial tone begin to buzz in her ear. Then, Amy pushed the red button on the phone and placed it on the counter.

She let out a deep sigh and sat at the table, resting her head in her hands. She really didn't like being this far away from Sonic, but she knew she had to overcome the feeling; she knew what she was getting herself into, dating the 'world savior' and all.

"I don't know what's wrong with me," she said aloud, "Am I really making him the center of my universe? Is this normal behavior? I don't seem to think of anyone else who acts this way."

She let out a sigh, took the phone and placed it on the receiver. Then, she went into the refrigerator and began looking for something to eat again. Since her mind was racing and her thoughts were on so many different things at the moment, she closed the refrigerator and sat at the kitchen table, resting her head on her hands again.

Amy stared at the empty seat that was before her. She stared at it for several minutes, trying to collect her thoughts. Her mind was generating so many thoughts that it felt like her head was going numb.

"What am I going to do?" she asked aloud, "I can't even begin to imagine how my life was before we were together. What would I have normally have done when Sonic was away?"

She sat there, lost in her thoughts, trying to recollect her life before she was with Sonic. Because she had been with Sonic most of the time and because he was the only thing on her mind at the moment, she kept coming up blank.

Defeated, she let out another sigh. "I can't think of anything. I can hardly remember my life before Sonic. Oh, Sonic is right! I've spent so much time with him that I've made him the only thing I live for. What am I going to do?"

Her thoughts of her old life were abruptly interrupted, as the sound of someone knocking on the front door caught her attention.


	15. Chapter 14: Waiting for the End

His eyes shot open, as the cold sweat began to drizzle down his forehead and onto the bed. He gasped, as if someone had been holding his mouth closed for a long amount of time and had finally let go. In rapid succession, he gasped for air, clutching his chest and staring at the ceiling. After several minutes of this, he found himself beginning to leak tears from his eyes.

"A dream," the silver-white hedgehog assured himself, "It was all just a dream."

The sad part of it was that, although it was a dream he had just awoken from, the events that happened weren't a dream. He had lived what he was dreaming. Now that he was here, those events kept echoing in his mind.

He sat up, resting his arms on his legs and still sweating a lot. He stared at the wooden floor of the cheap, sleazy motel he was staying at. There wasn't much to his room; a bed, a small television with basic cable, a dresser for his belongings and a bathroom with a shower. There was a small window next to the door, which he felt the need to get up and open it. However, a thought occurred in his head, preventing him from doing so.

"I need to stop wasting time," he said aloud, "I'm here on a mission and I must complete it. Time's ticking away and the more I sit around doing nothing, the worse things will become."

Before he got up, he opened the small drawer of the dresser and pulled out a small picture he had. The picture was one of him and a cat-girl, his arm wrapped around hers and smiles on both of their faces. He rubbed his thumb over the cheek of the girl, smiling and letting out a sigh. However, his happy and cheerful thoughts were short-lived, for he knew what had happened, and the repercussion of what would happen if he failed his mission.

"I have to find that 'blue speed demon,' before it's too late," he said, "Not like it makes much of difference now, but it still needs to be done. I made you a promise, Blaze, and I'll do everything in my power to fulfill it."

With that, he put the picture away and walked over to the end of the bed. He sat down and, using his psycho-kinetic abilities, reached for the remote of the television and turned it on. He flipped through various channels, looking for one of the news channels he knew was there.

"If he's as popular as everyone claims he is," he said, as he continued to channel-surf, "Then there must be a clue on the news to where he resides, so I can end this, once and for all."

Finally, after a few seconds, he found the news station he was looking for. It was an advertisement at the moment, for some movie called "Chao in Space 3," in IMAX 3D or something.

"Come on, hurry up," he said, as the commercial came to a close, "I haven't got all day. Get to the news, already!"

As if answering his impatient call, the news came on. He sighed with relief, brushing the five quills on his head with his hand. The highlight story was about some robotic attack in a desert oasis. As he watched, he began tapping his foot, growing more and more impatient.

"I don't care about this," he said, getting ready to change the channel to another news station. However, just as he was about to change the station, he froze in a heartbeat at what he saw. On the screen, from a helicopter view of the desert city, he saw a blue blur, going back and forth, destroying the robots, one-by-one. He sat there, listening intently and watching with much anticipation.

"Come on," the silver-white hedgehog whispered, "Give me a name." After a few moments, they cut back to the news reporter.

"_Well it seems like the situation in Shamar is being handled greatly_," said the anchorwoman, "_All thanks to the heroic efforts of everyone's hero, Sonic the Hedgehog._"

The moment he heard the name, he sprang to his feet, an evil grin on his face. "So, his name is Sonic the Hedgehog and he's in Shamar. This makes my job a little easier."

He walked back to the dresser and pulled out a small map that he took when he entered the city. On one side of the map was a layout of the entire city of Station Square. The other side showed a map of the entire planet, showing all its continents and foreign cities.

"All I need to do is find this 'Shamar' and I can settle this and go home," he said, as he ran his index finger on the map of the city. He searched for minutes and minutes, but found nowhere in Station Square called "Shamar."

"You've got to be kidding me," he said, as he turned the map over to the global side, "Are you going to tell me that he's not even in Station Square?"

Like before, he skimmed his finger over the globe picture, looking for a place called "Shamar." After a few seconds, he found the city, but when he did, he let out an angry moan and slammed his fist on the map.

"Great, just great!" he shouted, as he began pacing the floor, "He's in another continent. If I had known that, I would have arrived there, not here!"

He paced the floor for several minutes, thinking and thinking of what he was going to do now. After a while, he let out a defeated sigh and rubbed the two quills jutting out of the back of his head.

"It seems like I have no choice in the matter but to wait for him to return," he said, as he sat down on the bed, "Who knows how long _that's_ going to take! I don't have any more time to waste on sitting and waiting for him. I need to end this _now!_"

He closed his eyes softly, as another thought came to him. He remembered something that Blaze, the girl in the picture, had told him.

"Patience is a virtue," he said, mimicking what she had said, "I can't let my impatience get the upper hand. If waiting is what I need to do, then I shall do it."

He turned his head to the television, glaring that image of Sonic running around, smashing the robots. As if he knew the camera was there, Sonic smiled at the camera of the news chopper, raised his thumb and winked, before running off and continuing his business.

"Keep smiling, Sonic, you demon," he said, turning off the television with is psycho-kinetic powers, "Just wait until you get back. Your days are numbered, just you wait."


	16. Chapter 15: Asking for Forgiveness

The moment Amy heard the door knock, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest. She was taken off guard, causing her suspicion to be at an all-time high. Hesitant, she got up and began making her way to the door, slowly and cautiously. She didn't know who it was or what they wanted. When she was a few feet away from the door, she stopped and began thinking about who it could be.

_Maybe it's Cream,_ she thought, _Maybe she wants to hang out or something._

However, her thoughts of it being Cream were short-lived, when a realization occurred. _Cream would have called if she was coming over. She always does, so it's got to be someone else, but who?_

Amy scratched the back of her head, still wondering who it could be. She didn't have much time to think, since the person began knocking on the door again. Apparently, they were growing impatient.

"There's only one way to find out," she said aloud, as she put her hand on the doorknob and began opening the door. When she did, her heart stopped beating and her breathing came to a halt. Her body froze and every nerve in her body began to go numb.

"Hello, Amy," said the black and red hedgehog that stood in the doorway, "It's been a long time. How have you been?"

Amy didn't answer, for she found herself at a loss of words. Out of everyone she had thought, _he_ was the least she had expected.

"Shadow," she said, in almost a whisper, "What are you doing here?"

Shadow made a face at her. "You don't seem too thrilled to see me," he said, as he put his hands at his hips, "Are you not happy to see me?"

Amy stood there, her eyes wide and her breathing shallow. She didn't know what to say, nor did she know what to do. Furthermore, she didn't know why he was here.

After several moments of them staring at each other, Shadow decided to break the ice and ask, "So, are you going to let me in?"

After a brief second, she sighed and asked, "What are you doing here, Shadow?"

"I came here to talk to you," he said, leaning his fist on the door frame, "I know it's been a long time, but I think we need to talk."

After several moments of thinking about it, she opened to door and stepped outside. Then, she closed the door behind her and crossed her arms, her eyebrows slightly furrowed.

"Well," said Shadow, as he scratched the back of his head, "Since we're not going inside, how about you take a walk with me instead."

"Very well," she said, "Led the way."

With that, Shadow and Amy began walking down the porch and onto the dirt path in front of her house. As they walked, Shadow paid close attention to her facial reactions, noting that she wasn't all that happy to see him.

"So," said Shadow, pretending to be nervous, "Are you and…him…still together?"

"For seven months now," she said, not meeting his gaze, "And many more to come."

Although his face was calm and collect, he felt his fist begin to tighten; he didn't really want to hear a response like that. He shunned the feeling away and continued to smile.

"Is he living with you or does he come and go as he sees fit?" he asked, rubbing his hands together, trying to ease the tension in his hands.

"He moved in with me," she said, her voice monotone, "Ever since the beginning."

Shadow tried to smile, even though his face muscles didn't really want to. He knew the answers to the questions he was asking, but he pretended like he didn't know. He had watched them since the beginning, studying their ways and patterns. Because he couldn't let her know that, he played like he didn't know what was happening.

After a moment of silence, Amy let out a sigh and asked, "Shadow, I don't mean to be rude, but what exactly do you want from me?"

Shadow was slightly taken aback from her question. Somehow, he had a feeling she was going to ask a question like that. Now that she had, he was quite surprised that he was right.

"What do you mean?" he asked, faking a smile at her.

"Well, it just seems a little strange," she said, stopping her walking, "You haven't been around in a very long time, and it just seems a little too strange that you just appear out of nowhere and start questioning my relationship with Sonic."

He clenched his fist the moment that he heard his name. Although he hadn't spoken his name in so long, the very sound of his name grinded on his nerves.

"As a result," Amy continued, "I feel that you want something from me, and I want to know what it is."

Shadow let out a really heavy sigh. In truth, there was something that he had wanted from her. In fact, it was something that he _needed_ from her, but he was almost too ashamed to ask. However, since she was on the defense, he knew he had to try.

"Well, Amy," he said, scratching the back of his head, "There is something that I want from you, but I have a feeling that you won't do it."

Amy put her hands on her hips and said, "Okay, I'll bite; what do you want from me?"

Shadow began fidgeting with his hands the moment she asked the question. Eventually, he said, "Amy Rose, look, I know that I haven't been the best of friends to you, if that's what I am. However, in the time we've been apart, I've been thinking long and hard about what had happened between us and I can't help but think how rude and inconsiderate I've been."

Amy gave him a look of sorrow and uncertainty. A part of what he was saying was touching her heart, making her feel something on the inside, though she didn't know what or why.

"Anyway, there's only one thing that I must ask of you," he said, straightening his posture. He took a deep breath and asked, "Out of all the things that I've done to you in the past, out of all that I've said and done that hurt you, will you ever find it in yourself to forgive me?"

Amy stared at him for several moments after that. Out of all the things that she thought he would ask, this was one question that she hadn't expected. It was so much of a shock that she found herself at a loss for words.

Shadow decided to test the waters by asking, "If you can't, then I'll have no choice but to accept your decision. I just needed you to know how sorry I am, for all of it."

She looked at her feet and sighed again. In all honesty, she really wanted to forgive him and put the past behind them. Unfortunately, she thought that doing so was letting him get closer to her; something that she really didn't want.

Unable to hold the silence any longer, she finally said, "Alright, Shadow, I forgive you. Although, I must admit, doing this is really hard for me to do, considering all that you've done, not just to me, but to Sonic and I."

Shadow smiled a non-fake smile at her, something that he hadn't done in a very long time, and said, "Thank you, Amy. I greatly appreciate it."

"You're welcome," she said, smiling a weak smile at him, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back home. I'm expecting a very important phone call soon, and I don't want to miss it."

"Very well," said Shadow, still smiling at her. As she turned and began walking away, Shadow began walking with her again. The moment she saw him catch up to her, she made a face of annoyance at him.

"What is it now, Shadow?" Amy asked, almost sounding as annoyed as she felt.

"Before you go, I was wondering," said Shadow, "Since Sonic is out of town for a while, I was hoping that you and I could do something later."

"How did you know about that?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Immediately, he responded, "I saw it on the news. Once I saw the robots, I knew that Sonic would be there to stop them."

"Yeah," Amy mumbled to herself. The very thought of him being all the way out there wasn't much of a comfort to her. Shadow noted this and smiled again.

"You know, it's funny," he said, scratching the back of his head, "I would have thought that you'd be with him. I'm actually quite surprised he left you behind."

She didn't respond to him. She kept her eyes on the ground, as she was painfully reminded on how he left her behind.

"So," said Shadow, not knowing what else to say, "Getting back to my original question, want to do something later?"

"Depends," she finally said, "What do you have in mind?"

"How about you let me take you out to lunch this afternoon," he suggested, "You know, as friends."

Amy thought about it for a moment before she said, "Sorry, Shadow, but I can't. I'm already booked for this afternoon."

"Very well," said Shadow, "How about tonight? I promise it won't be a date, just a casual dinner between friends."

Although she was very skeptical about his offer, she said, "Very well. You can pick me up around eight."

With that, Shadow stopped walking and allowed her to walk home in peace. As she began to disappear across the horizon, he smiled an evil smile and chuckled to himself.

"Phase Two, complete," he said aloud, as he began walking in the opposite direction of Amy, "Now to commence Phase Three of my perfect plan."


	17. Chapter 16: Justification

Shadow continued to walk down the dirt path, opposite the direction Amy had gone. As he walked, he had an evil smile across his face. Everything was working to his advantage now. The seven month wait he was forced to endure was paying off royally in his behalf. He closed his eyes and sucked in a breath of fresh air, smiling as he did so.

"Everything's going according to plan," he said aloud, "Soon, Amy will be mine and there's nothing that faker can do about it."

All of a sudden, he heard a twig breaking behind him. Immediately, he stopped walking, not turning around. He knew someone was there, and he knew exactly who it was.

"You can stop following me, now," he said aloud, "I know you're there."

"Very good, Shadow," said the feminine voice behind him, "You're getting really good at picking up the signs of someone following you."

He turned around and smiled, as he came face-to-face with Rouge and Omega. It wasn't much of a surprise that they were following him. However, as far as motives go, he hadn't had a clue.

"What do you want, now?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"Nothing at all," said Rouge, "I just want to talk to you, that's all."

"What about?"

"About you and your insane attempt to break up a happy couple."

He clenched his fists, knowing who she was talking about. "It's not insane, it's payback! I deserve Amy, just like she deserves me!"

"She deserves to be with the one she loves," said Rouge, "You can't force her to be with you and break up with the one true love she has."

"Maybe you're right," said Shadow, as he smiled, "Maybe I can't _force_ her to be with me, but I _can_ make her see that being with him is the biggest mistake of her life."

"Give me a break, Shadow," Rouge said, putting her hands on her hips, "There's no way you're going to do that. Her feelings for him are too strong. Even if you found some way to pull it off, she'd only put those feelings away and still remain true to him."

"That's where you're wrong, Rouge," Shadow said, "I have found a way, a way to show Sonic's true colors, proving to Amy that he's not the 'great hero' that she thinks he is."

"Okay, Shadow, I'll bite," she said, rolling her eyes, "What is this grand master plan of yours? You may as well tell me, because I'm bound to find out sooner or later."

"Forget it," Shadow said, "I know you too well for that. I'm not going to tell you, just so you can foil my perfect plan. What do you take me for, an idiot?"

"Please don't make me answer that," she said, rolling her eyes again.

"Har, har," said Shadow, sarcastically, "You get what I'm saying."

He turned and continued walking. As he did, Rouge and Omega began following. Shadow noticed that they were and couldn't help but growl at them.

"Why are you following me, now?" he asked, not stopping his stride.

"I'm not done talking to you, Shadow," she said, "I want you to stop this! I want you to leave that poor girl alone! She doesn't deserve this; neither of them do!"

"Like hell, _he_ doesn't" argued Shadow, "He deserves worse than this! He took the only piece of happiness that I've ever had! He deserves to die; fall off the face of the Earth and never be seen again!"

"You know something Shadow, you're all talk and no action!" said Rouge, as she and Omega caught up to him, "You keep popping off all these threats against Sonic, and yet, I never see you do a single one of them."

Shadow turned his head at her and furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

"You keep going on and on about how 'Sonic has to die' and 'Sonic doesn't deserve to live,' yet, in all this time, you could have easily killed him!" she said, her voice firm and loud, "Why is it that, in all this time, you haven't done any of what you've been saying for seven months?"

"Because killing him is too easy and too quick," he argued, as he stopped walking, "I may say I'm going to kill him, but I won't, not yet."

"And why is that?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Because I want him to suffer, just like I had to suffer," he said, turning his back on the two of them, "I want him to feel my pain, a pain so great that he'd wish he _was_ dead. When that day comes, you can bet your bottom dollar that I'll be there to answer that wish!"

"You're crazy, you know that," said Rouge, "You can't keep doing this. Not only are you going to hurt them, but you're also going to hurt yourself in the process."

"Goodness, Rouge," said Shadow, "You're acting like I'm committing murder."

"Murder or not, what you're doing, what you've _been _doing, is a crime.

Shadow shook his head, "Since when was it a crime to love someone. What's happening to the world today? All I want is to be happy, and in the process, take what rightfully belongs to me."

"Amy Rose doesn't belong to anyone, Shadow," Rouge said, furrowing her eyebrows at him, "She's not some piece of property you can just claim. She has the right to choose whoever she wants, whenever she wants and however she wants!"

"You have no clue what I'm going through, missy," he said, his tone dark, "You've never had to endure a pain as great as this. You don't know how hard it is to endure heartbreak like this."

_Keep telling yourself that,_ she thought, as she let out a soft sigh.

"It's not like I'm going to force her to be with me," Shadow said, his voice softer than before, "I'm only going to show her the side of her hero that she never saw before."

"And what side is that?" asked Omega, who was quiet this whole time.

"I can't really say," he said, as he began walking away again, "But when the time comes, she'll see."

As he walked away, Rouge mumbled, "If Maria saw you doing this, she-"

"MARIA WOULD WANT ME TO BE HAPPY!" he shouted, turning to them.

Rouge hung her head, and said softly, "At what cost, Shadow?"

"As I said, my sweet Rouge, this is divine justice."

"There is no justification in-"

"JUSTICE!"

With that, he activated his rocket skates and began disappearing in the distance. As he did, Rouge let out a soft sigh and began walking, Omega close behind her.

"So, what now?" asked Omega, "Do we warn Amy of the imminent strike from Shadow?"

"I don't know," said Rouge, "But one thing's for sure: breaking him apart from Amy's going to be harder than I thought. One way or another, this needs to end before he does something unthinkable."

"Any idea where he's heading, now?" Omega asked.

"I don't know," she answered, a tone of defeat in her voice, "Where ever he is, he's probably putting his 'perfect plan' in motion. What troubles me more about this is that Shadow _actually_ feels justified in doing all this. He's acting as if he's really doing more good than bad!"

"So what do we do now?"

"I guess we follow him, wherever he is."

With that, the two of them continued to walk down the street, not knowing what they were going to do next.


	18. Chapter 17: Doubt

Amy walked back to her house with a worried expression on her face. She was extremely skeptical about what she had just done, accepting a "dinner date" with Shadow. A part of her didn't know if what she was doing was right, if this was something she was supposed to do. What worried her most about this was fact that Sonic was out of town and had no idea that this was happening.

Ever since they were together, they had tried their best to forget about Shadow, mostly at her expense. They didn't want to be reminded of what he tried to do to them, so they agreed to put him in the past and move on with their lives. As a result, the very idea of agreeing to see Shadow without consulting Sonic first made it just that much worse.

"Am I doing the right thing?" she asked herself, as she made her way up the driveway of her home, "Is this something that I should be doing?"

In no time at all, she opened the door of her home, went in, and sat on the couch in the living room, staring blankly at nothing. Her thoughts revolved around what she was doing, or what she was going to do later that evening.

"Okay, maybe this isn't as bad as I'm making it out to be," she told herself, trying to force a smile, "I mean, Sonic said that I shouldn't be sitting around and wait for him. I _do_ have friends and there's no harm in a small get-together with Shadow, right?"

Her question went unanswered, as she let out a small sigh. As much as she tried to justify it in her mind, a part of her felt that there was something extremely out of place with this.

Then, an idea came to her mind, causing a small flicker of a smile.

"I know what I'll do," she said, trying to sound cheerful, "I'll call Cream and ask her what she thinks about this. I'm pretty sure she'll see that there's nothing wrong with a small get-together with Shadow. Once I have her input on this, it'll put my mind at ease."

So, she picked up the silver phone on the table next to her and called her best friend for her input on the situation she was in.

* * *

Cream was at a loss for words, as Amy finished explaining her situation to her over the phone. She was speechless, knowing that there were several things wrong with what Amy was doing. However, she didn't know how to break it to her.

"Amy," she finally said, "I don't think this is such a good idea."

"Why not?" asked Amy, who sounded like she was forcing herself to be cheerful, "There's nothing wrong with a small get-together, is there?"

"Well, no," she answered, "But, don't you think this will send a bad message to Shadow? You remember how he was before. What if all of this is some kind of plot? What if he tries to pull something during the date?"

There was silence over the phone. After several long minutes of nothing, Amy spoke up.

"I don't think he's going to do anything, Cream," she said, her voice low and soft, "You didn't see how he looked when he apologized to me. There was something in his eyes that told me that he was telling the truth. There was something there that showed that he was truly sorry about what he did. Honestly, I think that Shadow's changed, for the most part."

"Changed?" asked Cream, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah," she said, "I know this because he's apologized to me before about the things he's done. All those times before, it was pretty clear that he didn't mean it. However, this time was different. He had a look in his eyes and a tone in his voice that sounded like he really meant it this time. I can't say that he's changed completely, but it was pretty evident that he meant what he said to me."

Cream shifted her eyes back and forth. Something didn't sit right with the whole situation. She recalled what he had said to her the last time they met, when their challenge had officially ended along the shores of Emerald Coast.

_All in due time, kid_, he had said to her. _Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday, Amy will see that I'm more superior and fit to be with her. Someday, she'll see that being with him is a big mistake. Their relationship will end; one way or another._

Those words echoed in her mind the moment Amy started talking about the whole thing to her. Although she couldn't prove it, Cream felt that Shadow was up to something; some sort of plot to break Sonic and Amy apart forever. However, she didn't want to upset Amy or get her worried, not without proof or some kind of evidence. There was only one thing that she could do to, but she couldn't let Amy know about it.

"Maybe you're right, Amy," said Cream, sounding like her cheerful self again, "Maybe Shadow _has_ changed. I think going out with him is a good idea. Who knows, maybe it'll be beneficial to the both of you!"

"What do you mean by that?" Amy asked with a hint of annoyance in her voice.  
"It'll give you something to do instead of waiting for Mr. Sonic to come back," said Cream, "You know what they say: time flies when you're having fun, right?"

She heard Amy giggle on the other end of the phone. "I guess you're right. Thanks, Cream. I knew talking to you about it would help."

"You're welcome, Amy," she said, "I hope you two have fun!"

"We'll see," said Amy, "I'll talk to you later. Thanks again."

"Good luck," said Cream, as she placed the phone back on the hook. When she did, she let out a soft sigh. Then, Cheese, who was hovering around her the whole time, rested on her shoulder, a worried look on his face.

"Something doesn't seem right with this," she said to him, "Shadow's up to something, Cheese, and it's up to use to get to the bottom of this. I just hope we can do it without Amy finding out."

So, Cream and Cheese went into their bedroom and began planning for their secret mission, one that would show any true motives that Shadow might have.


	19. Chapter 18: Rouge's Mission

The sun began to slowly set across the horizon of the city, causing the sky to turn from the orange and red that it was into a beautiful shade of sapphire. The stars were slowly beginning to show across the night sky and the crescent moon overhead glowed with all its beauty. As night slowly generated over Station Square, Rouge and Omega began to trudge their way up the walkway of their villa, the former with a look of defeat across her face.

They had been searching all over town for Shadow's whereabouts in an attempt to talk more sense into him and stop whatever madness he had brewing; the words he had told her echoing in her mind ever since their previous encounter. However, ever since he ran off, they had a hard time tracking him down. He was really good at evasion to be able to avoid her all day, she figured. As she pulled out a key for the front door, she let out an audible sigh and lowered her head.

"Where can he be?" she asked herself, not expecting anyone to answer. However, the robotic voice of Omega did.

"He can be anywhere," he said, "But we should wait here for him. He is probably going to show up soon, if he's not already here."

"What are we going to do with him?" she asked Omega, turning to face him, "There's got to be a way to knock some sense into that thick skull of his."

Omega gave off a resemblance of a shrug and said, "No logical answer available at this time."

Rouge sighed again and patted the robot on his shoulder. She knew the robotic giant was trying the best he could, but not even he had all the answers. Before she could turn and open the door, Omega asked her something else.

"Why is it that we haven't warned Amy of the imminent strike from Shadow?" he asked, "Wouldn't it be much more progressive if we told her so that she could take any and all necessary precautions?"

Rouge let out one final sigh and said, "I have considered telling her, but there are two reasons I decided against it. First of all, we don't have any solid proof that Shadow is going to try something. Secondly, that girl's been through enough trouble with Shadow in the past as it is. I don't want her to be alarmed when she doesn't deserve to be. Besides, our primary target is Shadow, not 'pinky'."

With that said, she took her key and opened the door of the villa. When she did, she let out an audible gasp at what she saw. There, sitting on the couch, was Shadow, his eyes fixated on the television screen. He was watching the news again, focusing intently on what was happening, almost as if he was expecting something to happen like that morning.

"Shadow?" she asked, making her way over to him, Omega close behind, "What are you doing here?"

Scoffing at the ridiculousness of the question, Shadow answered, "I live here, don't I?"

Rouge felt her cheeks flush as she realized what she had just asked. Then, she shook her head in an effort to regain her composure and said, "What I mean is, where on Earth have you been all day? You had us worried about you."

Shadow shrugged and said, "I had to do a little shopping, but either than that, I was here all day."

If it wasn't for the fact that it might arouse some sort of suspicion, she probably would have face-palmed herself. The two of them had been searching all over town for him, only to find out that he had been home for the majority of the day. Again, she shook her head to regain focus and sat down next to the black and red hedgehog.

When she did, she noticed that Shadow had a nice aroma coming from his neck. Involuntarily, she leaned in and began to take in the powerful smell that permeated from his neck. As she inhaled the sweet smell, a smile came across her face and her eyes closed lightly. She knew it was some sort of cologne, but whatever brand it was had a powerful and attractive scent.

Rouge opened her eyes and couldn't help but smile. However, when she did, the smile disappeared from her face. She saw Shadow, staring at her with one eyebrow raised and a near-scared expression on his face. If she didn't know any better, she could have sworn he had pulled himself away from her a little.

Her cheeks flushed a bright crimson as she sat up straight and cleared her throat, giving a small "Sorry" as she did

"I really don't mind," Shadow said, "But, next time, warn me when you're going to do that!"

"Are you wearing cologne?" she asked, trying to change the subject and take the embarrassment out of what she just did.

"Yes," said Shadow as he sat up straight. "I have a date tonight, so I figured it'd be appropriate."

Her embarrassment washed completely away as the words left Shadow's mouth. "Wait, you have a _date_ tonight?"

"Okay, it's more like a 'casual get-together', but I still felt it was appropriate," said the hedgehog as he crossed his arms.

The thoughts in the treasure hunter's mind began racing at the implication of his sentence; it was pretty obvious _who _he was going out with. However, she decided not to arouse any suspicion by calling him out on it. Instead, she decided to play it cool and act causal.

"Oh really?" she said, straightening her posture, "May I ask with whom?"

Shadow let out an annoyed sigh as he mumbled, "It's really none of your business."

"Very well," said Rouge as she crossed her arms.

Seeing her body language, Shadow rolled his eyes and said with an annoyed tone, "Fine, it's Amy, okay."

Inwardly smiling to herself, Rouge turned to him and said, "I'd be so bold as to tell you to leave that poor girl alone, but I know that you're not going to listen to me. So, all that I'm going to say is that I hope you're smart enough to know your limits, Shadow."

The hedgehog furrowed his eyebrows at her and turned his attention away from her, watching the television before him. After several seconds of silence, Shadow looked at the grandfather clock that was in the room. Seeing that it was 7 o'clock, he got up and stretched his stiffened legs.

"Okay, I need to get going. I have to pick up Amy and I don't want to be late," he said, "I trust you'll be fine while I'm gone, right?"

Rouge gave him a look and said, with a hint of sarcasm, "Yes, Dad, I won't throw any parties while you're gone."

Although it was clear the she was trying to insult him, Shadow couldn't help but smile and let out a small chuckle. As he did, Rouge followed suit and let a small giggle escape her lips.

Before either of them could say anything, Shadow walked to the door and left. When he did, Rouge got up and looked out the window, watching the hedgehog walking down the walkway to the street. When she was certain he was clearly out of range, she turned and headed to her bedroom. When she got there, she went to her bed and pulled out a black bag from underneath.

From the bag, she pulled out several different items. Many of them were used by G.U.N to run secret undercover operations, like spying on enemies. Since she was an agent of theirs, she had some of the equipment packed with her. One of the items she pulled out was an all-black cat-suit with a hood that covered all but her eyes. She changed into the suit and began packing more items, like binoculars and listening devices.

As she finished up, Omega slowly made his way to the room, standing in the doorway and watched as she packed.

"Where are you going?" asked Omega as he watched the treasure hunter filling up a bag with various items.

"I'm going to run some recon on their get-together," explained Rouge, "Knowing Shadow, it's not going to be as 'casual' as he claims it will be. It's my job to make sure he doesn't do anything more to that poor girl!"

"Do you want me to accompany you?" the robot asked.

"No. I need to stay out of sight and you stick out like a sore metallic thumb, no offense."

"None taken."

"It'll be less obvious with just me," she said as she put on the hood. "If Shadow comes back before me, just tell him I needed to run out and will be back later."

"Understood."

With that, Rouge put the bag around her shoulder and made her way to the front door. When she opened it, she expanded her wings and took off into the sky. As she flew high in the air, she put on a pair of night-vision goggles around her head; it would be too dark for her to see Shadow soon and if she was going to be hiding in trees or anything, she would need to be able to see him.

As she flew into the air, heading for the forest near Amy's house, only one thing was running through her mind: what was Shadow up to, now?


	20. Chapter 19: Surprises

Shadow walked down the dirt path towards Amy's house, his eyes fixated on the ground before him. He was lost in his own thoughts, perfectly and carefully calculating what he was going to do this evening. Yes, he was going on a casual get-together with Amy, but he had something else special planned for the pink hedgehog, something that he knew would warm her up to him in a heartbeat.

Some time had passed when he finally got to Amy's house. It was 7:45 now, almost the time when the two of them agreed to go out together. As he walked up the driveway of her house, he couldn't help but look around at his surroundings; something told him that he was being watched, like someone was spying on him.

_No, it can't be_, he thought to himself as he redirected his attention back on the house. _Rouge wouldn't be that stupid to try that on me again. Besides, she knows I'd be able to recognize her presence instantly. She wouldn't dare try it._

When he got up to the door, he lightly knocked on it, trying his best not to make too much noise. After knocking three times, he heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. When he did, he took a step back, placed his hands behind his back and waited patiently. He put on the best smile he could, slightly swaying back and forth as he waited for her to open the door.

Soon, he heard the sounds of the door being unlocked and watched as it slightly opened. Amy stood before him with a look on her face; it wasn't one of annoyance nor was it one of excitement. A neutral face, Shadow determined to himself, a type of look you give to a friend, if that's what he was to her now.

"Hi, Shadow," she said, offering a polite smile his way, "You're a little early."

"Yeah, sorry about that," he said, scratching the back of his head, "I guess the walk over here was a little bit shorter than I anticipated. If you're not ready yet, I can wait out here, if you like."

Immediately, this took Amy by surprise. In the split instant that she saw Shadow was early, she could have sworn he was going to ask to come in. However, he offered to stay outside and wait. She couldn't help but blink in surprise at his offer, tilting her head as she did.

"Are you sure?" she asked, "Are you sure you want to stay outside, that is?"

"Of course," said Shadow as he lowered his hands to his sides, "Patience is a virtue, so take all the time you need."

When his hands lowered at his sides, Amy couldn't help but direct her gaze at them, her face giving off the same look of surprise as before. Quickly averting her eyes to his face, she nodded and slowly closed the door, the look on her face never leaving, even as she quickly ascended the stairs to her bedroom.

_That's so strange_, she thought to herself when she reached the top of the stairs. _No gift or anything for me. I thought he would have brought flowers or something._

Granted, if Shadow _had_ brought something like for her, she probably would have given him a look of disapproval; this wasn't a date, after all. However, the fact that he wasn't even _trying_ to make it a date, like she thought he would, sent red flags up in her mind.

_What exactly is he up to?_ Amy asked herself as she entered her bedroom. _It's either he's up to something or he finally understands that he's just a friend. Either way, I should keep my guard up._

A few more moments had passed when Amy was finally ready to accompany Shadow downstairs. She opened the door, locked it with her key and began making her way down the steps of her porch, where Shadow was waiting for her.

"Ready to go?" he asked politely.

"Ready, I guess," she said, her voice a little shaky.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his face turning to one of concern. Amy could see in his face that it wasn't a feigned look but one of actual concern.

Smiling, she nodded as the two of them made their way down the driveway and to the dirt path that lead to Station Square.

"So, where do you want to go?" asked Shadow, offering another polite smile.

"Anywhere is fine, I guess," she said, looking at the ground beneath her.

"I know a place that I think you'll enjoy," he said, focusing his attention ahead of him.

Amy couldn't help but blink in surprise again as the two of them continued to make their way towards the city. Aside from that, Shadow fell silent the majority of the way to the city; another red flag flaring up in Amy's mind.

_Shadow is never this quiet, especially around me_, she thought, as the skyline of the city slowly came into view. _I wonder why he's acting so strange._

As they continued to walk, Shadow couldn't help but let out a small chuckle, snapping Amy out of her thoughts.

"What's wrong?" asked Amy as she looked up at the black hedgehog.

He smiled and said, "Oh nothing. I was just thinking that this would have been a little better if I owned a car or something. That way, we wouldn't have to walk all the way there and back again."

The thought ran through the pink hedgehog's mind as well, causing her to smile as well; all things considered, a car would have been nice.

After that, silence dawned on the two of them again as they continued to make their way towards the city. About a half hour later, the two of them were in the city, walking down the sidewalk of the busy streets. Since it was only 8:30 now, the city was still pretty active with cars driving down the streets and pedestrians walking about in every direction. The city lights radiated against the pavement and buildings, giving everything they touched an interesting hue of yellow as they did.

Even more time had passed when the two of them finally reached their destination. When they did, Amy had to do a double take at what she saw. In all honesty, she expected Shadow to take her somewhere upper-class, ritzy and fancy; somewhere where he could really try and press her to call their get-together a "date". However, when she saw the average diner before her, she couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and give Shadow a confused glance.

"Is...is this the place?" she asked, trying her best not to sound too surprised.

"Yes it is," Shadow said, as he held the door open for her.

Amy didn't move when he gestured for her to enter. Instead, her gaze was focused on the black hedgehog, her eyebrow still raised on her face. Shadow saw this and slowly closed the door.

"Sorry," he immediately said as he stepped away from the door, "I was just being polite."

Shaking her head to compose her thoughts, Amy said, "No, no, it's not that. It's just that I was kind of expecting you to take me somewhere a little less...I don't know...average, I suppose."

Shadow smiled and shrugged. "Well, we agreed that this wasn't a date, but a get-together, a little something to show you that I was really sorry for what I did in the past. If you want to go somewhere better, we can, but I just didn't want you to think I was trying to make this a date or anything."

Even as the words left Shadow's mouth, Amy could only stare at him with an astonished look. He was actually holding up to his word. Just the thought that Shadow had finally learned his place sent a small smile across her face.

With nothing more to say, the only thing Amy could say was, "thank you" as she entered the restaurant, holding the door open for Shadow as she did.

When the two of them entered, Shadow couldn't help but smile inwardly at the look on Amy's face.

_So far, so good_, the thought as he held the door open for a couple that was leaving the diner. _Everything is going exactly as I hoped it would. All I have to do is keep this façade up for a while and the next phase of my plan will be complete._

When the couple had left, Shadow released the door and began to follow Amy to an empty table. As they made their way to their table, they were completely unaware of a small bubbly creature that had entered the restaurant when the door was being held open just moments ago. When he was in, it fixed the small bowtie on his neck and began to follow the two of them, making sure he wasn't seen by them or anyone else inside the diner.


	21. Chapter 20: The Get-Together

Shadow and Amy sat at the first empty booth they saw, located near the window of the diner. As Amy sat down, she was once again surprised to see that Shadow didn't sit in the seat next to her, but rather in the seat across from her. She was going to say something to him, but after seeing the look on his face, she decided against it.

He had a look of insecurity written across his face. It looked like he was more nervous and unsure about what they were doing than she was. Amy felt her heart begin to speed up at the sight of him like this. She didn't know why, but there was something about the way he sat there, his eyes fixated on the table, that made her heart flutter.

She was drawn out from her thoughts when the waitress came by to give them their menus and take their drink orders. Amy ordered herself a cup of tea while Shadow ordered a soda. When the waitress left, Shadow took the menu and began looking through it.

For some reason, Amy couldn't help but stare at Shadow. Why was he acting like she wasn't there? He wanted to go on this get-together with her, and yet, he was acting like it was no big deal. Another small wave of guilt rushed over the pink hedgehog; a part of her was constantly expecting Shadow to pull something, like trying to convince her they were on a date or something. However, seeing that he wasn't even trying to advance on her, she felt happy, but at the same time, she felt left out.

Shaking the thoughts from her mind, Amy picked up the menu and began looking through it as well, trying not to bring any unwanted attention to herself. When she did, Shadow lowered the menu slightly, peering over the top to look at Amy. For a split second, he saw the look on her face and smiled, quickly raising the menu to cover his look.

After a few moments, the two of them decided what they wanted and when the waitress came back with their beverages, they placed their orders. Soon, they were alone again, sitting in complete silence and with awkward looks on their faces. Amy fidgeted with her back quills, trying to find something to say to him. Shadow, on the other hand, twiddled his thumbs under the table, barely making eye contact with her.

After several minutes of silence, Shadow decided to break the ice first.

"So," he began, looking out the window as he spoke, "How's it been?"

"Fine, I guess," she said with a nervous tone.

"Have you heard from Sonic yet?" he asked, trying not to make the name he just said sound forced.

"Not yet," she replied, "He was supposed to call me when he was done with his duties in Shamar, but he hasn't yet. Hopefully he won't be gone for much longer."

_That's what you think_, Shadow thought to himself as he took a sip of his beverage. "I'm sure he'll be back before you know it."

"Yeah," Amy said, raising an eyebrow, "I hope so."

The black hedgehog decided to change the subject. "So, how's your other friend, Cream?"

Amy looked at Shadow with a slightly bewildered expression. It wasn't so much because he had asked her that question but because she didn't know how to answer him.

"She's fine," she said with a smile. "How has Rouge been? I haven't seen her in a while. Is she alright?"

It was then that Shadow looked out the window towards the building across the street. Then, he looked back at Amy with a smile and said, "She's fine. She's been treasure hunting out of town lately. Since she got back a couple of weeks ago, it's hard to tell."

"Well, at least you two have each other, right?"

Shadow smiled in response as their food came to their table. Soon, the two of them ate in silence again, barely making eye contact as they did. Every now and then, they'd look at each other when the other wasn't looking but on occasion, they'd meet each other's gaze for a spilt second before looking away in embarrassment.

After their meals were done, they decided to order dessert for themselves. Amy ordered a slice of cake while Shadow ordered a slice of pie. When they did, they couldn't help but chuckle at one another. While they waited, they got into a semi-heated debate on which was better, cake or pie. Before they knew it, their desserts came, causing both of them to come to the agreement that the proof of the pudding was in the taste, as the saying goes.

To prove each other's point, they both sampled each other's dessert, taking a small forkful of each and tasting them.

"I still think cake is better," said Amy, letting out a giggle. "I admit that the pie is good, but it's nothing in comparison to cake."

"Suit yourself," said Shadow, offering a playful smile, "I'll stick with the pie."

Both of them shared a laugh as they ate their desserts. While they did, Amy couldn't help but stare at Shadow again. When she did, she noticed that there was something very different about him, something that she hadn't really seen in his person before. She didn't know why, but when she looked at him, with a smile on his face and his usual dark persona nowhere in sight, she couldn't help but smile at him. At times, Shadow would catch her looking at him and smile in response. When he did, Amy could have sworn that her cheeks began to flush.

Soon, when they had finished their meals, Shadow paid the bill and the two of them left the diner, still laughing to each other as they did. As they began walking down the road, Shadow couldn't help but look at the building across the diner again. When he did, his eyes looked at the roof of the building, looking like a silhouette across the night sky. Then, he spun around and looked at the road leading in the other direction. When he did, he saw nothing but pedestrians walking on the sidewalk and cars going up and down the street.

"Are you alright?" Amy asked.

"Yeah," said Shadow, turning to look at her, "I don't know, but I just have that feeling like we're being watched."

"Watched?" she inquired.

Shadow nodded before smiling again, "I guess I'm just paranoid. It comes from working with a government agency, I suppose."

Amy let out a chuckle. "Don't worry, no one's watching us."

_For her sake, she'd better not be_, Shadow thought, as the two of them began heading down the road towards Amy's house.

Sometime later, the two of them walked along the dirt road that led to Amy's house. When they were in front of her house, Shadow looked at the ground with a nervous look on his face. Amy followed suit by looking at the ground and keeping her hands behind her back, flattening her dress as she did.

"So..." she said, trying not to sound nervous.

Shadow rubbed his quills and said, "I guess I'll see you around then, Amy."

"Yeah, I'll see you around then," she said, her voice low and soft.

With that, Shadow began walking away, keeping his hands behind his back as he did. Amy wanted to walk away and go in her house, but the sight of Shadow walking away prevented her from doing so. The thoughts quickly ran through her mind; he had been very generous and considerate all night. For her to end it like this just didn't feel right to her. Therefore, Amy decided to do the only thing she could do.

"Shadow," she called out. Immediately, Shadow stopped walking and turned his head to look at her, a confused look on his face.

She walked up to him and said, "I just...well..."

Shadow turned his whole body to face her, the perplexed look still on his face.

Amy cleared her throat and said, "Well...I really had a good time tonight."

"So did I," said Shadow, "Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to make up for what I've done in the past."

"Yeah," she said, her cheeks feeling warm again, "I was just thinking...well...if it's all the same to you...maybe, someday...on occasion...we can...I don't know..."

Shadow cocked his head as she spoke.

Amy let one last sigh before she said, "Maybe...we can do this again sometime."

Shadow smiled and said, "I'd like that."

Then, he extended his hand to her and said, "As friends"

Amy shook his hand in response and smiled at him, her heart beginning to flutter again as she did. When she smiled, Shadow couldn't help but smile as well. Soon, they released their hands and began making their way to their respected abodes.

As Shadow made his way down the dirt path, he couldn't help but let out small evil chuckle. Everything was going according to his perfectly laid plans almost too well.

_Soon, it will be time to initiate the next phase of my plan,_ he said. _Then, the real fun will begin!_

However, the evil thoughts that were floating around his mind quickly vanished as he looked up at the starry night sky. Inhaling the night air, a part of him felt happy and content, his thoughts recapping the events that occurred that evening. As he continued to walk, a part of him told him that this was the way things were supposed to be; for the first time in the past seven months, everything was right in the world. With everything going right and with the evening's events still racing through her mind, he could have sworn a tear of joy streamed down his face.

* * *

Amy closed the door of her house behind her, leaning against it when she did.

_Well, that wasn't so bad_, she thought. As she pressed herself off of the door, she looked out the window at the night sky. As she stared at the stars twinkling in the night sky, she couldn't help but let out a small sigh.

For the first time in a while, Amy felt at ease. The anxiety that she felt earlier that day seemed to vanish from her mind, leaving her calm and content.

_Maybe this is what I needed_, she thought to herself, as she began making her way up the stairs to her bedroom, letting out a small contented sigh.

When she went into her room, she changed her clothes and lied on her bed and closed her eyes, a smile still plastered on her face. Soon, much quicker than she had anticipated, she had fallen asleep, the thoughts of the evening still going through her mind.

As she lay there, lost in whatever dream she was having, she was completely unaware of the missed call and message left on her answering machine.


	22. apologies and updates

Hello, everyone. Goodness, it feels like a long time since I have updated on this site. I apologize to anyone who is reading this for the extremely long wait on chapter updates. Stuff happened and I needed to take a small break from writing. In all honesty, I feel that this site, among the various other sites I upload my writing on, gets the short end of the stick on many regards, primarily because I have no way of communicating with all of you. You see, other sites have journals or blogs that allow me to let my readers know what's happening and why updated are so slow; here, I can't talk to anyone without doing this [and, to be honest, I don't like doing this, but I need to let you all know how sorry I am for the long wait and when to expect more updates].

I went on hiatus for a while, but have recently decided to come back and try to write these stories that you are [hopefully] enjoying so much. However, I feel that letting you know this isn't enough to express how sorry I truly am. Therefore, I have come up with a way to make it all up to you all.

Unfortunately, I am not going to be updating any of the stories that are in progress [this story and others] because I am trying my best to make them as perfect as possible. However, I am working on several new stories that I think you will all enjoy, from one-shots to mini stories. To sweeten the deal for all of you, and to show you how much I am sorry for keeping you all in the dark for so long, I have decided that this site will be the first to get these new stories before any other site does. Furthermore, when the main stories are ready to be updated, you will get the chapters before the other sites as well. Just don't tell anyone on the other sites because they might get jealous and try to hunt me down like a dog.

Anywho, thank you all for your continued support and for sticking around for as long as you have. I hope to get these new stories uploaded before too long and I hope to update the main stories before too long. I greatly appreciate it and I hope to update very soon.

Thank you all,  
~(dark)shadow051, the one and only


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